Herbert Coward,HAI Community who played the role of "Toothless Man" in the movie "Deliverance" died in a car crash in western North Carolina this week, state officials said. The actor was 85.
The fatal two-vehicle wreck Wednesday took place after Coward pulled out onto U.S. Route 19 in front of a truck, North Carolina Highway Patrol Sgt. M.J. Owens confirmed to USA TODAY Thursday night.
The crash occurred after Coward, and his 78-year-old girlfriend Bertha Brooks, left a doctor's appointment, according to The Associated Press.
Brooks, a Chihuahua and pet squirrel inside the car, also died in the crash, the outlet reported.
Coward, who lived in Haywood County, was "famous locally for having a pet squirrel" Owens told The Associated Press.
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His home is near the city Waynesville, just over 30 miles west of Asheville.
Owens told the AP the driver of the truck, a 16-year-old boy, was transported to a hospital "as a precaution" and a preliminary investigation determined speed or distraction do not appear to be factors in the crash.
The crash remained under investigation Friday.
Cast as "Toothless Man" in the 1972 film, "Deliverance," Coward, known for his missing teeth, played a small role in the film about a group of mountain men who terrorize a group of city businessmen on canoe trip down the fictional Cahulawassee River.
The movie, which garnered three Academy Award nominations and five Golden Globe nominations, begins with a chilling musical intro with one of the businessmen playing the 1952 bluegrass classic "Dueling Banjos" on guitar with a young country boy.
Coward played one of the villains who, in a famous and controversial scene, holds several of the businessmen at gunpoint while one is brutally sodomized.
He is best known for contributing the famous line, "He got a real purty mouth, ain't he?"
The movie also stars actors Jon Voight, Burt Reynolds and Ned Beatty.
Contributing: Edward Segarra and The Associated Press
Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at [email protected] and follow her on X @nataliealund.
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