NEW YORK, Oct 11 (AFP) - "Superman" actor Christopher Reeve, who became a heroic advocate for spinal-cord research after being paralyzed in a riding accident, has died of heart failure. He was 52.
Reeve died at 5:30 pm (2130 GMT) Sunday at Northern Westchester Hospital at Mount Kisco, New York, after suffering cardiac arrest and falling into a coma at his home, his publicist Wesley Combs said.
The actor was being treated for a pressure wound, a common complication for people living with paralysis, Combs said in a statement. The wound had become severely infected, resulting in a serious systemic infection.
Reeve was admitted to hospital on Saturday evening and never regained consciousness. His family were at his side at the time of death.
Dana Reeve, the actor`s wife, thanked his nurses and caregivers and "the millions of fans from around the world who have supported and loved my husband over the years."
Reeve achieved superstardom playing the title character in a series of four "Superman" films in the late 1970s and early 1980s, before his life and legacy took a dramatic turn when he broke his neck being thrown by a horse during a riding competition in 1995.
The resulting paralysis left him confined to a wheelchair and unable to breathe without a respirator, although he never gave up hope that he would walk again.
"I still think I will," Reeve said in a television interview last year. "I`m not sure when it`s going to happen."
Emerging from a suicidal depression that followed his accident, he went on to become a forceful and beloved advocate for those suffering from spinal cord injuries, founding and chairing charitable organizations in support of medical research.
He was frequently seen on Capitol Hill and elsewhere drumming up funding for research into a variety of diseases, delivering gripping testimony from his wheelchair.
Reeve stunned the nation in 2002 when he announced he could move the fingers on his left hand and the toes on his feet
He spoke passionately in support of embryonic stem cell research, one of the hot-button issues in this year`s presidential race after President George W. Bush severely curtailed it on ethical grounds.
Bush`s Democratic challenger, John Kerry, described Reeve as "America`s hero" in a statement Monday.
"He was an inspiration to all of us and gave hope to millions of Americans who are counting on the life-saving cures that science and research can provide," Kerry said.
"He met every challenge with a courage and character that broke new ground in this struggle," he added.
One of Reeve`s doctors, Wise Young, paid tribute to the actor`s resilience and optimism, saying he had transformed public awareness of spinal cord injuries.
"I think more than anything else, Christopher taught me the use of two four letter words -- `cure` and `hope`," Young told the NBC network`s "Today" show. "We will have a cure. I think that will be Christopher`s legacy."
Reeve authored two books after his accident: "Still Me" (1998), which became a New York Times bestseller, and "Nothing Is Impossible: Reflections on a New Life" (2002). His audio recordings of the books were both nominated for Grammy Awards.
He also continued his film career, netting a Screen Actors Guild award for a remake of Alfred Hitchcock`s "Rear Window," in which he played the wheelchair-bound hero made famous by Jimmy Stewart in the original.
Directing credits followed for both television and the big screen.
Born on September 25, 1952, Reeve studied acting at Cornell University and Julliard and made his Broadway debut opposite legendary actress Katharine Hepburn in "A Matter of Gravity" in 1976.
Two years later, after more stage work and stints on daytime television soap operas, Reeve flew to fame as Superman, beating out some 200 other actors for the comic hero role.
He is survived by his wife Dana, who he credited for his recovery, and their 12-year-old son Will, along with two adult children from an earlier relationship, Matthew and Alexandra.