Fess Parker Dies at 85

Fess Parker Diest at 85, who launched a nationwide craze of coonskin caps and toy rifles in the mid-1950s with his TV portrayal of rugged frontiersman Davy Crockett, and later starred as Daniel Boone in another TV buckskin drama, died March 18 at his home near Santa Barbara, Calif., where he had been a successful winemaker and real estate developer. The cause of death was not reported.

In the 1960s Parker found TV success as a frontiersman again when he landed the lead in the TV series “Daniel Boone” – a role he played for six years. He also produced several episodes of the show.

In 1970, he retired from acting and launched a successful career in real estate. He returned to TV briefly in 1974 with his own sitcom, “The Fess Parker Show” but rarely appeared on television after that.