A once hugely popular TV star in the 1960s, Ron Ely, best known for his portrayal of "Tarzan," reportedly passed away last month at the age of 86.

In a recent emotional tribute to her beloved father, Ely's daughter Kirsten took "comfort" in that he was now reunited with her late mother and younger brother, who were both tragically killed in separate but related incidents about five years earlier, The Mercury News reported.

The famous actor's wife, Valerie, had been stabbed to death at their home by their son, Cameron, who was later shot to death that same day by sheriff's deputies.

Remembering her beloved father

TMZ reported this week that Kirsten Ely revealed that her father Ron had passed away peacefully at his home while surrounded by his loving family at the age of 86 about three weeks earlier on September 29.

In a heartfelt Instagram post that included nearly two dozen photos of her father spanning several decades, the grieving daughter wrote, "The world has lost one of the greatest men it has ever known -- and I have lost my dad."

"My father was someone that people called a hero. He was an actor, writer, coach, mentor, family man and leader. He created a powerful wave of positive influence wherever he went," she continued. "The impact he had on others is something that I have never witnessed in any other person -- there was something truly magical about him. This is how the world knew him."

Kirsten went on at length to share her immense love and respect for her father as well as to describe how she was dealing with the grief of the terrible loss by picking up the "broken" pieces of her heart and "cementing" them back together.

"My greatest comfort is knowing that my dad is with my momma and my brother," her post concluded. "It is also my greatest sadness because I miss them all so much that it’s etched into my soul. I will proudly carry all of my favorite pieces of them -- lovingly cemented into my heart -- until we all meet again."

Family rocked by tragic deaths

According to Mercury News, on October 15, 2019, Cameron Ely, 30, stabbed and killed his mother, Valerie London Ely, 62, at their family home in Santa Barbara, California, and then a few hours later was shot and killed himself by sheriff's deputies in the home's driveway.

An autopsy later revealed that Cameron, a former star quarterback who played football in high school and at Harvard University, had been suffering from the early effects of chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, which is a degenerative brain disorder linked to repeated injuries to the head, such as occur in contact sports like football.

Per the Mayo Clinic, some of the symptoms of CTE, which tend to show up years after the initial injuries and grow worse over time, include "behavioral changes" like "aggression" and "impulsive behavior" as well as mood swings like "depression or apathy," "emotional instability," and "suicidal thoughts or behavior," among other cognitive and neurological problems.

Mercury noted that a subsequent investigation determined that deputies were "justified" in shooting Cameron nearly two dozen times because of his "erratic" and "volatile" behavior. The Ely family later sued the sheriff's department and claimed that the shooting was not justified because Cameron was unarmed and further alleged that deputies had denied medical care to both mother and son which resulted in both of their deaths.

Popular TV actor from the 1960s-1990s

As for the late actor, Ely's IMDb page credits him with 43 appearances as an actor in a career that stretched from 1958 to 2014, with the vast majority of those being single appearances on various TV series from the 1960s through the 1990s.

In addition to his starring role as "Tarzan" from 1966-1968, Ely also had repeat appearances on "The Aquanauts" in 1961 and shows like "The Love Boat," "Fantasy Island," and "Sea Hunt" in the 1980s.