James Grant remembers Anthony Hamilton on his birthday: ‘Tony was hilarious and a loyal friend’

Anthony Hamilton was an iconic actor who was on the rise to stardom in the late 1980s. While the star was at the height of his career, he passed away in 1995 at the age of only 42 years old. Now, years later, James Grant, who worked as the chief of a large magazine, opened up about the famed actor and how good friends they were before his passing.Anthony Hamilton would have turned 74 years old earlier this month. Years after his passing, James Grant, who once worked as the chief of Life Magazine, opened up about how the actor was. The two had been known to be longtime friends and were very supportive of one another.In a social media post, he remembered his late friend on his birthday and wrote, “Happy Birthday in Heaven Tony Hamilton. Tony was hilarious and a loyal friend of mine for over 15 years.”In an interview with PEOPLE, the chief and businessman opened up about what kind of person Hamilton was, citing that he was a character on his own and was a great person altogether. He further added, “He was wildly handsome in that unusual classic movie star way, almost an old-fashioned movie star kind of way. He was a total character.”Further on, he also opened up about the last time the two longtime friends had met before Hamilton’s passing in 1995. He shared that they had met for the last time when the actor was in the process of selling off his condo estate. “He hadn't been working a lot. He looked great, he appeared to be in good health, and then I stopped hearing from him, and, you know, I reached out maybe once. I should have reached out that second time. That's what you're supposed to do,” he added on.Anthony Hamilton was only 42 years old when he passed away in March 1995. Hamilton passed away because of AIDS-related pneumonia. The news was a surprise to many, as the actor had kept his AIDS diagnosis away from the public eye. Grant had also stated in the interview that he only got to know of his diagnosis after the news of his passing spread.Hamilton was born on May 4, 1952, and initially started working as a model in the entertainment industry. He was also a known ballet dancer at The Australian Ballet. Later on, after his transition to acting, he gained critical fame with ‘Samson and Delilah.’ Later on, he was cast as the lead for the TV series, ‘Cover Up’, after the main lead, actor Jon-Erik Hexum, passed away because of an on-set accident. Some of his other major roles included ‘Jumpin' Jack Flash’, ‘The Charmings’, ‘The Twilight Zone’, ‘Mission: Impossible’, and ‘P.S. I Luv U.’