Ryan Reynolds is paying tribute to his late father-in-law Ernie Lively two days after his death. It was announced on Thursday that Blake Lively‘s father had passed away due to cardiac complications in Los Angeles, California. The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard star took to his social media platform to show his love for his wife as she navigates through this difficult time.
One day after news broke that her father had passed, according to Us Weekly, Blake took to Instagram to share a sweet photo of the two to her story, using a brown heart emoji as the caption. One day after she shared that, Reynolds reposted it to his Instagram story as well. While Blake and Reynolds are well known in film and television, her father is as well. Lively was best known for his roles in Passenger 57, The Dukes of Hazzard, and Turner & Hooch. Her father was 74-years-old when he passed, and when the announcement was made, it was clarified he not only had his wife by his side but all of his kids as well.
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While Lively passed with cardiac issues, this wasn’t his first experience dealing with heart problems. In 2013, he underwent heart surgery in a groundbreaking procedure called retrograde gene therapy, which requires doctors to inject his own stem cell into his heart to repair any damaged muscle and arteries. “I woke up the other morning and told my wife, ‘I haven’t felt this good in years,’” Lively told PEOPLE at the time following his medical procedure. “I moved to Utah because of the snow, but I haven’t been able to ski. I literally didn’t have the heart to do it. Now, I’m excited about living the rest of my life instead of sitting around. Dr. Patel saved my life.”
Ernie was born Ernest Brown Jr. in Baltimore and before he started his acting career, he was an English professor and served as a lieutenant in Vietnam. When he returned, he was a captain in the U.S. Marine Corps and then moved on to acting. While Blake fell into acting, so did her brothers and sisters, including Jason Lively (National Lampoon’s European Vacation), Eric Lively (So Weird, The L Word), Robyn Lively (Twin Peaks, Doogie Howser, M.D.), and Lori Lively (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, ER). Ernie has coached several actors throughout his career, including all of his children.
