Kris Kristofferson, country music pioneer who thrilled audiences in A Star Is Born, dead at 88

Kris Kristofferson, the vibrant, trailblazing country music hitmaker who wowed audiences in the 1976 remake of “A Star Is Born,” died on Saturday at the age of 88.The star was surrounded by his family, but no cause of death was given, Variety reported Sunday.Just one month before his death, the Golden Globe winner put his ranch on Northern California’s Mendocino Coast on the market for $17.2 million, per The Sacramento Bee.He announced his retirement in a 2021 statement issued by his management, revealing that he had slowly stepped back from the spotlight.

Kristofferson was known for his chart-topping 1972 song “Why Me,” and “Me & Bobby McGee,” a hit recorded by Janis Joplin shortly before her 1970 death.Kristofferson once said his songs “come from (the) soul” and described his songwriting ability as a gift, according to PBS.He was just as successful on the big screen.He played vampire hunter Abraham Whistler in the 1998 horror film “Blade” and the love interest of Ellen Burstyn’s character in the 1974 drama “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore,” directed by Martin Scorsese.

“Blade” took off as a trilogy series, with the second installment premiering in 2002, and the third in 2004.He reprised his role as Whistler in all of the following movies, playing Blade’s mentor (Wesley Snipes).

Kristofferson was born on June 22, 1936, in Brownsville, Texas, where he found a passion for music at a young age.He recalled hearing country and Norteño music and songs of Mexico and southern Texas on radio stations there.“I think it was the strongest influence in my life,” Kristofferson admitted during a 2018 appearance on New Orleans public radio station WWNO.

“I spent about 11 years down there — my first 11 — and the border music, the Mexican music, it was just heart music, and the country music was the same,” he continued.“I always felt that it was the Rio Grande Valley that got the music going in my brain.”When Kristofferso...