Jay North, who portrayed Dennis Mitchell in the 'Dennis the Menace' television series, has died at age 73.

TV star Jay North, famed for his title role in Dennis the Menace, died at the age of 73.

LOS ANGELES - Jay North, who played Dennis Mitchell in the original 1959 “Dennis the Menace” TV series, died Sunday (April 6th) after a battle with cancer, his long-time friend Laurie Jacobson confirmed in a social media post. He was 73. “As many of his fans know, he had a difficult journey in Hollywood and after…but he did not let it define his life.” After the series ended in 1963, North went on to appear in several one-off roles on TV shows like “The Man from U.N.C.L.E.,” “The Lucy Show,” “My Three Sons” and “Jericho." ” North, a Hollywood native, was a fan of television from a young age. He started his career acting in commercials and appearing in small roles on variety shows like “The Eddie Fisher Show” and “The Milton Berle Show.” By the time he was six years old, he had landed the starring role in “Dennis the Menace.” He later said his experiences as a child star had been abusive and advocated for the rights of young actors.

He was best known for playing the towheaded Dennis Mitchell on a sitcom that ran on CBS from 1959 to 1963.

Jay North, who played Dennis Mitchell in the original 1959 'Dennis the Menace' TV series, died Sunday. He was 73.