By Joseph Martinez -

James Avery, best known for his portrayal of the patriarch, Will Smith's character's uncle in the TV sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, died at the age of 68 from complications following open heart surgery in a Los Angeles suburb hospital.

His publicist, Toni Benson, confirmed the news of his death to CNN, as well as his former co-star Alfonso Ribeiro, who tweeted, "I'm deeply saddened to say that James Avery has passed away. He was a second father to me. I will miss him greatly."

Avery was born in 1945 in Pughsville, Suffolk County, Virginia and raised in Atlantic City, New Jersey. After graduating high school, he served in the Vietnam War as a member of the U.S. Navy from 1968–1969,  Later on, he moved to San Diego, California where he began to write poetry and TV scripts.

Besides playing the beloved character 'Uncle Phil' on the show (ranked as one of TV Guide's "50 Greatest TV Dads of All Time"), Avery was a prominent voice actor who supplied the voice of Shredder in the original "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" television cartoon and the voice of War Machine in the animated "Iron Man" series.

Avery had recently undergone open heart surgery and reportedly died from complications from the operation. Avery is survived by his wife Barbara, whom he had been married to for 26 years, his mother, Florence, and his step-son, Kevin Waters. (photo: © 2013 Joe Martinez / Picturelux)