One of the most famed heroes of the modern era, both on and off the silver screen, has passed away.

Christopher Reeve, legendary star of the “Superman” movies and advocate of spinal cord research, died in a Mount Kisco, N.Y., hospital Sunday, having slipped into a coma over the weekend. He was 52.

Reeve won the hearts of filmgoers in 1978 as the then-unknown actor tackling the title role in “Superman,” playing the mighty figure with the forceful confidence of a comic book creature while offering the most ordinary treatment to Clark Kent, a character that helped make the superhero relatable to moviegoers everywhere.

Throughout that first picture and three subsequent “Superman” films, Reeve garnered critical acclaim and quickly became a Hollywood icon, delivering suave lines, performing his own stunts and giving wide-eyed children reason to ogle with delight.

But in May 1995, fans of Reeve were given a sad reminder that the man behind the cape was only human after all, as an equestrian accident bound the relatively young actor to a wheelchair. In his final nine years, the famed performer became a leading advocate of spinal cord research, founding the Christopher Reeve Paralysis Foundation and making a poignant 1996 appearance at the Academy Awards, calling for Hollywood to apply a greater focus to social issues.

Reeve would also become associated with the political hot potato of stem cell research. Just this past Friday evening, Sen. John Kerry invoked the partially paralyzed actor’s name in the second presidential debate.

But even in a wheelchair, Reeve never lost his deep affection and tremendous talent for acting. In 1998, the leading man took to television in a delightfully moving remake of Alfred Hitchcock’s classic “Rear Window,” garnering multiple awards for his stirring performance.

Still, Reeve’s most popular part was likely that introductory role 20 years earlier in “Superman.” In that film, he famously declared, “I’m here to fight for truth and justice and the American way.”

Ironically, it was when Reeve was forced to trade his wings for a wheelchair that he truly did just that.