WATCH as Larry Hagman stars along side Barbara Eden in I Dream of Jeannie.

DALLAS star Larry Hagman has died at the age of 81.

Hagman, famed for playing the villainous oil baron J.R. Ewing, passed away at a Dallas hospital after losing his battle with cancer.

"When he passed, he was surrounded by loved ones,'' the star's family said in a statement. "It was a peaceful passing, just as he had wished for.''

According to the statement, Hagman died late on Friday afternoon at Medical City Dallas Hospital.

"Larry was back in his beloved Dallas re-enacting the iconic role he loved most,'' the statement said.

"Larry's family and close friends had joined him in Dallas for the Thanksgiving holiday.''

Hagman's Dallas co-stars Linda Gray and Patrick Duffy, who played his wife Sue Ellen and brother Bobby, were at his bedside when he died, The Sun newspaper reported.

Barbara Eden, Hagman's co-star in I Dream of Jeannie, paid tribute to the actor on Twitter, describing him as "the Texas Tornado".

"Not just a great actor, not just a television icon, but an element of pure Americana," Eden tweeted. "I'll miss him."



She later wrote: "Amidst a whirlwind of big laughs, big smiles and unrestrained personality, Larry was always, simply Larry."

Hagman revealed last year that he had been diagnosed with throat cancer, saying: "As J.R. I could get away with anything - bribery, blackmail and adultery. But I got caught by cancer."

He underwent treatment for his cancer and was back filming the new Dallas series in January, reprising his role as the legendary villain who TV viewers loved to hate.

Hagman, who was born in Forth Worth, Texas, shot to fame in 1965 when he landed the role of Anthony Nelson, Barbara Eden's "master", in the popular sitcom I Dream of Jeannie.

His role as the scheming oil tycoon JR Ewing in Dallas, which debuted in 1977, made him one of the biggest stars of television. In the final scene of the 1979 season, Hagman's character was shot by an unknown assailant, launching the landmark "Who Shot JR" storyline and breaking ratings records.

In 1995, Hagman had a liver transplant after nearly 50 years of alcoholism. He later revealed how he used to down bottles of champagne on the Dallas set.

"I was loaded all the time, all the time, all during Jeannie, all during Dallas I was loaded," he told the BBC in 2001.



"I never got sober. Do the first scene, get it into the can, hopefully by nine o'clock and so I'd reward myself, I'd open a bottle of champagne and start to imbibe."

Hagman, whose mother was Broadway star Mary Martin, married Swedish-born Maj Axelsson in 1954 and the couple had two children. Maj was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in 2008.

A heavy smoker as a young man, he later quit and recorded several public service announcements pleading with smokers to stop and urging non-smokers never to start.