Mitzi Gaynor, the midcentury Hollywood star who appeared in the musicals “South Pacific,” “Les Girls” and “There’s No Business Like Show Business,” died Thursday. She was 93 years old.
In a statement posted to X’s official account, Gaynor’s management team, Rene Reyes and Shane Rosamonda, said she “passed away peacefully today of natural causes.”
“For 80 years, she entertained audiences in film, television and on stage. She truly enjoyed every moment of her professional career and the incredible privilege of being an entertainer,” Reyes and Rosamonda said. . “Off the stage, she was a vibrant, extraordinary woman, a caring and loyal friend, warm, kind, very funny, and an absolutely wonderful human being. And she could cook. !”
They said Gaynor often said his audience was “the sunshine of my life.”
The actor, singer, and dancer began dancing at the age of eight, beginning with ballet and tap lessons and performing with the LA Civic Light Opera in her early teens. She danced in her 20s during the filming of South Pacific in 1958, where she played Ensign Nellie Forbush in the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical. She also won over audiences in the 1950s films “Anything Goes” starring Bing Crosby and “Joker is Wild” starring Frank Sinatra.
Later in her career, she endeared herself to young viewers with many television specials. She also had a prolific career on stage, most notably on the annual Mitzi Gaynor Show, where she performed stand-up comedy in which she performed her jokes in dialect, including a Hungarian-born cellist. She attributes this to her father, who is a musician. He also appeared on the national tour of “Anything Goes” from 1980 to 1990.
“We are proud that her creative legacy continues through her many magical performances captured on film and video, on her recordings, and especially in the way audiences around the world have generously shared with her throughout her life and career. “We take great comfort in the fact that the legacy continues through the love and support shared with us,” her team said.
Gaynor, born Francesca Marlene de Zany von Gerber, was born in Chicago on September 4, 1931, to a cellist father and a ballroom dancer mother, and was an early supporter of her daughter’s interest in the performing arts. .
“When I was nine years old, my mother and aunt took me to see Carmen Miranda in the stage revue ‘The Streets of Paris.’ I was fascinated!” she told Closer earlier this year. “I remember telling my mom, “I can do this.” That’s what I want to do. ” From that moment on, it was all about making “Tootie,” my childhood nickname, a star. ”
Two years later, Gaynor’s family moved to Hollywood, and at the age of 17, the trained ballerina signed a seven-year contract with 20th Century Fox. She told CBS in 2019 that studio executives convinced her to change the name, saying it looked like a delicatessen.
“He said, ‘What about Gaynor, like Janet Gaynor?’ My dad loved that,” she said.
Gaynor made her film debut in a supporting role in the musical My Blue Heaven (1950), co-starring Betty Grable. The newcomer fell in love with his famous co-star.
“If she had to go to the bathroom, I would follow her into the bathroom,” she said in 2012.
Shortly after, Fox gave Gaynor her first starring role in The Golden Girl (1951). He then appeared in Bloodhound of Broadway (1952). “Down Among the Sheltering Palms” (1953). and “There’s No Business Like Show Business” (1954), featuring Ethel Merman and Marilyn Monroe.
Also in 1954, Gaynor married agent Jack Bean, who left his job at MCA to start an advertising company. Bean served as Gaynor’s husband and manager for more than 50 years until his death in 2006, but the couple had no children.
In 1960, two years after Gaynor’s Golden Globe-nominated performance in South Pacific, Gaynor and Beene purchased a Spanish-style villa in Beverly Hills where they frequently entertained guests. That same year, Gaynor was also honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. (Several of her television specials have since been nominated for 17 Emmy Awards and won six.)
Towards the end of his career, Gaynor reinvented himself and toured nightclubs across the United States. She made her Manhattan nightclub debut in 2010 at the age of 78 with her own show, “Razzle Dazzle!” My life behind the sequins. ”
Gaynor, known for her flashy costumes, recalled the “lost art” of dressing in a 1993 interview with The Times.
“I can’t stand the grunge. I can’t stand the chic. While authenticity is becoming popular, dressing is really becoming a lost art,” she said. “But for those of us who lived in the ’50s and ’60s, dressing up was real. The eyelashes, the heels, the glamour, all of that was real to us.”
She said she became her first client for famous designer Bob Mackie, whom she met around that time. When introduced to them, Gaynor mistook the young visionary for a fan.
“I said, ‘Oh my god, you’re 13 years old!'” Gaynor said, adding that when she first saw his sketch, “I almost fainted.” McKee went on to design approximately 500 costumes for movie stars who became Las Vegas showgirls.
Last year, Gaynor celebrated his 92nd birthday and took to social media to thank his fans for their support over the years.
Quoting Singin’ in the Rain producer Arthur Freed, she writes: Why does December seem as sunny as spring? Why do I wake up every morning and start work? Be happy and rise with joy in your heart…”
“It’s all thanks to you.”
