Kris Kristofferson, a country music legend and ‘Blade’ star, dies at 88. The Grammy-winning singer is also remembered for his role in “A Star is Born.” Grammy-winning country music artist and actor Kris Kristofferson has died at 88. In a statement posted to his official Facebook account, Kristofferson’s family said the musician died Saturday. “It is with a heavy heart that we share the news our husband/father/grandfather, Kris Kristofferson, passed away peacefully,” the statement released Sunday read. “We’re all so blessed for our time with him. Thank you for loving him all these many years, and when you see a rainbow, know he’s smiling down at us all,” the statement added. Kristofferson died “peacefully in his home in Maui, Hawaii,” his family said. Born Kristoffer Kristofferson in the border town of Brownsville, Texas, on June 22, 1936, he earned a master’s from Oxford, moved to California, joined the Army and became a helicopter pilot — and began writing songs on the side. Inspired by Dylan, he rejected an Army assignment to teach literature at West Point and instead moved to Nashville.
