Steve Dash, original Jason Voorhees in 'Friday the 13th Part 2,' dies

DELRAY BEACH, Fla. – Steve Dash, the actor and stuntman who originally portrayed Jason Voorhees in the first sequel to the popular slasher series "Friday the 13th" before becoming a taxi driver in South Florida, has died.

Scream queen Judie Aronson, who made her acting debut in the third sequel, "Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter," posted a tribute to Dash on her Instagram account Wednesday, hours after several alternative news and entertainment websites reported his death.

Dash, 74, was hospitalized earlier this month in Florida, announcing on his Facebook page that he was having his leg amputated.

"It's been pretty tough suffering from diabetes, blood clots and a bad heart over the last year," Dash wrote in a Dec. 4 post. "I welcome the decision I've made because I will be able to play golf in 6-8 weeks with a brand new leg."

In a post the next day, Dash said the "surgery went good" and vowed to be in Atlanta next month to film scenes in an upcoming horror movie. 

Dash played Jason in 1981's "Friday the 13th Part 2," becoming the first actor to play the iconic horror villain.

Horror movie aficionados and trivia buffs know Jason didn't don his signature hockey mask until 1983's "Friday the 13th Part III." In the original movie, Jason's mother was the killer, out to avenge her son's death by slaughtering the counselors at Camp Crystal Lake, where the childhood Jason drowned years earlier.

Dash did not return for the sequels and therefore never got to wear the hockey mask, instead sporting a sack with an eyehole over his head.

"When I did it, it was a low-budget film and I figured, you know, 'Who's ever going to watch this thing?'" Dash told WPBF in October 2013. "You know, had I known then what I know now, 31 years later, I would have been the Jason in every one of them."

Dash also had bit roles in 1981's "Nighthawks" and the 1982 horror film "Alone in the Dark," but he made his mark in Hollywood as a stuntman in movies like "F/X," "9 1/2 Weeks" and "Wise Guys."

A retired New York police officer, the former Palm Beach Gardens resident appeared in more than 40 movies, often credited as Steve Daskawisz.

Although his IMDb profile shows he was regularly working in mostly made-for-television movies, shows and shorts, Dash made the most of his cult status by entertaining passengers in his taxi cab. WPBF caught up with Dash in West Palm Beach, where he drove a taxi and delighted unsuspecting passengers with stories from "Friday the 13th Part 2."

A picture posted on his Facebook page Dec. 12 showed Dash lying in a hospital bed with his eyes closed.

Fangoria was the first to report the news of Dash's death.

The actor-turned-cab driver was a regular on the horror convention circuit in recent years.

A cause of death hasn't been revealed. His family was asking for privacy.