Actress Mitzi Gaynor — who gained fame starring in the 1958 war musical “South Pacific” — died on Thursday at the age of 93.
Gaynor’s managers, Rene Reyes and Shane Rosamonda, shared the news on Gaynor’s X account. The pair said the star “truly enjoyed every moment of her professional career” as well as the “great privilege of being an entertainer.” They further confirmed Gaynor died of natural causes.
“Off stage, she was a vibrant and extraordinary woman, a caring and loyal friend, and a warm, gracious, very funny and altogether glorious human being. And she could cook, too!,” the managers said in their X tribute.
“We take great comfort in the fact that her creative legacy will endure through her many magical performances captured on film and video, through her recordings and especially through the love and support audiences around the world have shared so generously with her throughout her life and career,” they continued.
Gaynor’s career took off in the 1950s, with her appearing in a number of musicals, including “There’s No Business Like Show Business,” alongside Ethel Merman and Marilyn Monroe, and 1956’s “Anything Goes,” which starred Bing Crosby; she also co-starred alongside Gene Kelly in 1957’s “Les Girls.”
Her best-known role came a year later, when she played Ensign Nellie Forbush in “South Pacific.” The musical was a hit, pulling in more than $17 million against a $5 million budget. Gaynor’s role was lauded and earned her a Golden Globe nomination.
As musicals began to fade away, Gaynor shifted towards television work in the 1960s and ’70s. She appeared on variety shows like “The Dick Clark Show” and appeared in a number of her own one-off specials, earning her 16 Emmy nominations over the years.
She remained active into the 21st century, including appearing in a 2008 salute to musicals from the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences alongside Shirley MacLaine and other stars.
Gaynor was born Francesca Marlene de Czanyi von Gerber in Chicago on Sept. 4, 1931. She married MCA talent agent Jack Bean in 1954, and the couple stayed together until Bean’s death in 2006.
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