Eartha Kitt, Dies at age 81

According to CNN.com, December 25, 2008,

Eartha Kitt, the sultry singer, dancer and actress who rose from South Carolina cotton fields to become an international symbol of elegance and sensuality, has died. She was 81.

Andrew Freedman says Kitt died Thursday of colon cancer and was recently treated at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in New York.

Eartha Kitt’s Biography at http://www.earthakitt.com/ekpage-bio.html EARTHA KITT is an international star who gives new meaning to the word versatile. She has distinguished herself in film, theater, cabaret, music and on television. Miss Kitt is one of only a handful of performers to be nominated for a Tony (three times), the Grammy (twice), and Emmy Award (twice).

 Miss Kitt’s distinctive voice has enthralled an entirely new generation of fans. Young fans loved her as YZMA, the villain, in Disney’s animated feature THE EMPEROR’S NEW GROOVE, (2001 Annie Award for Best Vocal Performance / Animated Feature). Miss Kitt was also featured in the sequel, THE EMPEROR’S NEW GROOVE II and reprised the role in the popular Saturday morning animated series THE EMPEROR’S NEW SCHOOL for which she received a 2007 and 2008 Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program and a 2007 and 2008 Annie Award for Best Vocal Performance in an Animated Television Production. In 1967, Miss Kitt made an indelible mark on pop culture as the infamous CATWOMAN in the television series, BATMAN. She immediately became synonymous with the role and her trademark growl became imitated worldwide.Singing in ten different languages, Miss Kitt has performed in over 100 countries and was honored with a star on The Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960. In 1966, she was nominated for an Emmy for her role in the series, I SPY. In 1968, Miss Kitt’s career took a sudden turn when, at a White House luncheon hosted by Lady Bird Johnson, she spoke out against the Vietnam War. For years afterward, Miss Kitt was blacklisted in the U.S. and was forced to work abroad where her status remained undiminished. In December 2006 she returned to Washington and lit the National Christmas Tree alongside President and Mrs. George W. BushLive theater is Miss Kitt’s passion. In 2001, Broadway critics singled her out with a Tony and Drama Desk nomination for her role as Dolores in George Wolfe’s THE WILD PARTY. Over the last few years, she has starred in National Tours of THE WIZARD OF OZ and Rogers & Hammerstein’s CINDERELLA. In December 2003, Miss Kitt dazzled Broadway audiences as Liliane Le Fleur in the revival of NINE, THE MUSICAL. In December 2004, she appeared as The Fairy Godmother in The New York City Opera production (Lincoln Center) of CINDERELLA. She also starred in the off-Broadway production of MIMI LE DUCK (2006).

She is survived by her daughter Kitt Shapiro and four grandchildren. Our condolences to her family and friends coming from entertainment, we will miss her dearly.

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