Gary Epper

{{Short description|American stunt performer, coordinator and occasional actor}}

{{Infobox person

|name=Gary Epper

| image = Publicity_Photo_of_Gary_Epper.jpg

| caption = Publicity Photo of Gary Epper

|birth_name = Gary Alan Epper

|birth_date={{Birth date|1944|12|31}}

|birth_place=Los Angeles, California

|death_date={{Death date and age|2007|12|1|1944|12|31}}

|death_place=Los Angeles, California

|occupation = Stuntman, coordinator, actor

|years_active = 1952–1999

|spouse =

|children = 5

| father = John Epper

| mother = Frances Epper

|relatives = Jeannie Epper (sister)
Tony Epper (brother)

}}

Gary Alan Epper (December 31, 1944 – December 1, 2007) was an American stunt performer, coordinator and occasional actor. Part of a major stunt family dynasty in Hollywood, he was the son of John Epper, the brother of fellow Star Trek stuntmen Tony Epper and Andy Epper and stuntwoman Jeannie Epper. His family traces its lineage back to "a colonel in Napoleon's army" and his great-grandson, a multi-lingual Swiss who eventually lived in California where he began the family tradition in stunt work and the tradition has passed down from each generation.Chris Nashawaty, "Danger Is Their Middle Name: Don't let the tranquil smiles fool you. You're looking at some of the world's most fearless daredevils. Meet the Eppers, Hollywood's reigning dynasty of stuntpeople. Thrill-seeking is in their genes," Entertainment Weekly (October 19, 2007): 94.

Epper worked on some of the most successful Hollywood blockbuster films and television series of all time, including Lassie (1954), Hawaii Five-O (1968), Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970), Conquest of the Planet of the Apes (1972), Magnum Force (1973), Starsky and Hutch (1975-1979), Charlie's Angels (1980-1981), Blade Runner (1982), Scarface (1983), Top Gun (1986), The Untouchables (1987), Rambo III (1988), Lethal Weapon 2 (1989), The Hunt for Red October (1990), Days of Thunder (1990), Die Hard 2 (1990), Basic Instinct (1992), Jurassic Park (1993), Demolition Man (1993), Speed (1994), L.A. Confidential (1997), The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997), Armageddon (1998) and Wild Wild West (1999).{{cite news|url=https://movies.nytimes.com/person/89044/Gary-Epper/filmography|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121103041611/http://movies.nytimes.com/person/89044/Gary-Epper/filmography|url-status=dead|archive-date=November 3, 2012|department=Movies & TV Dept.|work=The New York Times|date=2012|title=Gary Epper filmography|accessdate=September 15, 2010}}

As an actor, he is probably best known for playing the assimilated borg Ensign Lynch in Star Trek: First Contact.{{cite web|url=http://www.listal.com/list/we-are-the-borg|title=We are the Borg. 18:Gary Epper|publisher=Listal|accessdate=September 15, 2010|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100918213209/http://www.listal.com/list/we-are-the-borg|archivedate=September 18, 2010}}

Epper died on December 1, 2007, at age 62 in Los Angeles. Epper had five children, Lisa, Danielle, Gary, Madison and Nicole, and five grandchildren, Brie, Skyler, Emma, Maggie and Kate.