Actor John Gavin passed away on Friday as his home in Beverly Hills, California at the age of 86.

The cause has yet to be revealed, however Budd Burton Moss, Mr. Gavin’s former agent and the manager of Mr. Gavin’s wife actress Constance Towers, stated that Mr. Gavin had been ill for months.

Gavin was a strikingly handsome actor who was best known for his work in “Spartacus” and “Psycho.” He appeared in other hit films in the 1960s before he moved on from acting and became President Reagan’s ambassador to Mexico.

Gavin appeared in a handful of B-list movies in the 1950s before he caught his first big break and played the lead roll in “A Time to Love and a Time to Die” in 1958. While the movie didn’t perform as strongly as Universal Studios had hoped, they didn’t give up on Gavin’s talents. They starred Gavin next to Lana Turner in a remake of the soap opera “Imitation of Life” the next year.

Then came the role of Janet Leigh’s divorced lover, Sam Loomis, in the 1960 Alfred Hitchcock classic “Psycho.” This was followed by a flurry of films over the next few years, including playing Julius Ceaser in “Spartacus” and appearing with Susan Hayward in “Back Street.” He also appeared in the Shakespearean spoof “Romanoff and Juliet” with Sandra Dee, and again with Dee in “Tammy Tell Me True.”

In the 1960s Gavin’s career began to wane, and a minor role in the 1967 musical “Thoroughly Modern Millie” was the last of his roles with Universal. Gavin went on to appear in a couple TV shows such as “Fantasy Island” and “The Love Boat” but quickly moved on to a new adventure.

Gavin became interested in politics in the 1970s, serving as the president of the Screen Actors Guild from 1971 to 1973. He gained real political authority in 1981 when Ronald Reagan named him the U.S. ambassador to Mexico. The move was very controversial, since Gavin was seen as being an unqualified appointee. However he did have some history with the culture. His mother was Mexican, he spoke fluent Spanish, he had extensive travel and business experience in Latin America and he had a degree in Latin American economic history from Stanford University. Despite this, following a few scandals and a strained relationship with Mexican press, Gavin quietly resigned from the position in 1986.

He was born John Anthony Golenor in Los Angeles on April 8, 1931, to Herald and Delia Diana Pablos. His father was descended from early Irish landowners in California, his mother from an influential family in Sonora, Mexico. He attended St. John’s Military Academy in Los Angeles and Villanova Preparatory School in Ojai, and graduated from Stanford in 1952.

He married the actress Cicely Evans in 1957. They had two children, Cristina and Maria, and were divorced in 1965. He had been married to Ms. Towers since 1974. She had two children from a previous marriage, Michael and Maureen McGrath.

Besides Ms. Towers, his survivors include his children and stepchildren and several grandchildren.