According to her relatives, Angela Lansbury, 96, died on Tuesday. “The children of Dame Angela Lansbury are devastated to announce that their mother died quietly in her sleep at home in Los Angeles at 1:30 AM today, Tuesday, October 11,” her family said.
The Hollywood legend died five days before her 97th birthday. She received five Tony Awards, including one for her performance in Noel Coward’s Blithe Spirit in 2009. She was well known for playing ghoulish pie-maker Nellie Lovett in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street on Broadway. Her other three Tonys were for Mame, Dear World, and Gypsy.
Lansbury’s death was mourned by Actors’ Equity, which noted, “Lansbury was an Equity member for 65 years. She leaves a legacy of effort. Her loved ones have our sympathy.”
Several actors, including Viola Davis, paid tribute to the iconic actress, writing, “Considered you immortal. Your legacy is stunning. You inspired generations of actors to excel. Relax! Angels fly.”
Josh Gad said, “Rarely does one person define decades of labor across generations. # Artist AngelaLansbury. From “Mame” to “Bedknobs,” “Murder She Wrote,” “B&TB,” and “Mary Poppins Returns,” she impacted four generations. R.I.P.”
In a touching tribute, Catherine Zeta-Jones said their time together in A Little Night Music will “forever remain one of the delights of my life.” “One of the most versatile, brilliant, graceful, kind, humorous, wise, classy females I’ve ever encountered,” said Seinfeld’s Jason Alexander.
