Born on December 24, 1955, in Moses Lake, Washington, Clarence Gilyard Jr. was an American actor, novelist, and university lecturer. In the 1986 film Top Gun, he played Sundown opposite Tom Cruise.

He later rose to fame as an actor on the big screen. Before then, though, he made several TV appearances in the 1980s. Gilyard’s other notable performance was as Theo, a terrorist computer guru, in Die Hard (1988).

On November 28, 2022, Clarence Darnell Gilyard Jr. passed away. At the time of his passing, he was 66 years old. The University of Nevada, Las Vegas, officially acknowledged Gilyard’s passing.

Where did Clarence Gilyard go to high school?

Gilyard was a young adult who resided in Rialto, a suburb of San Bernardino, California, and went to Eisenhower High School. He graduated in 1974 after excelling in school.

Where did Clarence Gilyard go to college?

He spent a year as an Air Force Academy cadet following that, then left the military to enroll in Sterling College. He played football in college and joined the Sigma Chi fraternity. He was given a tennis scholarship as well, but he left school before finishing his coursework.