Popular actress Joanna Pettet, known for The Group movie, dies at 83
- Joanna Pettet, best known for The Group and many other movies, has died at the age of 83
- The acclaimed actress enjoyed a decades-long career in film and television, becoming a familiar face during Hollywood's golden era
- Beyond her screen success, Pettet's life was filled with remarkable achievements, leaving behind a legacy that captivates fans
Joanna Pettet, the actress best remembered for her roles in The Group and the James Bond parody Casinoo Royale, has died at the age of 83. She passed away on Tuesday, July 7, at Temecula Valley Hospital in California. A cause of death has not yet been announced.
Her longtime friend and former manager Pam DuBois confirmed the news to The Hollywood Reporter. In a heartfelt Facebook post, DuBois reflected on the timing of Pettet’s passing, noting that it came exactly 31 years after the death of her son Damien Cord.
“We all loved Jo — but there was one person who loved her more. And yesterday on the 31st anniversary of his death, Damien Zach took his mother to heaven and there she will stay with him forever,” DuBois wrote.
Born in London in 1942, Pettet was raised in Montreal after losing her father in World War II. At 16, she moved to New York City to study acting, quickly making her mark on Broadway before transitioning to film. Her breakout role came in Sidney Lumet’s The Group (1966), where she starred alongside Candice Bergen and Jessica Walter. The following year, she appeared in The Night of the Generals, Robbery, and Casinoo Royale, playing Mata Bond, the daughter of James Bond and Mata Hari.
Pettet’s career spanned film and television, with appearances in Blue (1968), Night Gallery, Fantasy Island, and Knots Landing.
In 1984, she even played herself in The Fall Guy during a James Bond tribute episode. Her final screen credit was Terror in Paradise (1990), after which she retired from acting.
Beyond her career, Pettet’s life was marked by both glamour and tragedy. She was married to actor Alex Cord from 1968 to 1989, with whom she shared her son Damien. She was also romantically linked to actors Terence Stamp and Alan Bates.
In 2002, she rekindled her relationship with Bates, who left her an inheritance upon his death the following year.
Pettet’s legacy endures not only through her work but also through her connections to Hollywood history.
She was with Sharon Tate for lunch on August 8, 1969, just hours before Tate was murdered by the Manson family. Decades later, she was portrayed by Rumer Willis in Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood.
Joanna Pettet leaves behind a body of work that captured both the elegance and complexity of her era, remembered fondly by colleagues, friends, and fans alike.
Source: Instagram
Legit.ng earlier reported that Ann Blyth, one of the last surviving stars from Hollywood’s Golden Age, died at 98. ABC’s George Pennacchio reported her passing on Thursday, June 25, noting that she died the previous day from natural causes.
Born Anne Blythe in Mount Kisco, New York, in 1928, she dropped the “e” from her name as her career blossomed.
After her father left the family, Blyth’s mother moved her and her sister to New York City, where Blyth began acting on the radio at just five years old. By nine, she had joined the New York Children’s Opera Company.
Her Broadway debut came in 1941’s Watch on the Rhine, which toured nationally and even performed for President Franklin D. Roosevelt and First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt.
That tour brought her to Los Angeles, where she signed with Universal and made her film debut in 1944’s Chip Off the Old Block, The Hollywood Reporter reports.
The following year, Blyth was loaned to Warner Bros. for Mildred Pierce, starring opposite Joan Crawford. At just 16 years old, she played Veda, the manipulative daughter whose performance earned her an Academy Award nomination.
Though a back injury briefly slowed her career, Blyth went on to star in more than two dozen films over the next decade, including The Great Caruso (1951), Rose Marie (1954), and Kismet (1955). She also charmed audiences in Mr Peabody and the Mermaid (1948), playing the mute mermaid.
Source: Instagram
Hollywood icon James Handy dies at 81
Legt.ng earlier reported that renowned actor James Handy was announced dead after a frightening incident in his home.
Handy was known for his iconic appearances on Top Gun: Maverick, Logan, Jumanji, The Rocketeer and Arachnophobia.
Details surrounding the death of the veteran star left both fans and celebrities in shock as they mourned him.
Source: Legit.ng
