LOS ANGELES (AP) 鈥 Mitzi Gaynor, the effervescent dancer and actor who starred as Nellie Forbush in the 1958 film "South Pacific" and appeared in other musicals with Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly, has died. She was 93.
Gaynor, among the last survivors of the so-called golden age of the died of natural causes in Los Angeles on Thursday morning, her long-time managers Rene Reyes and Shane Rosamonda confirmed in a statement to The Associated Press.
鈥淎s we celebrate her legacy, we offer our thanks to her friends and fans and the countless audiences she entertained throughout her long life,鈥 Reyes and Rosamonda said in a joint statement. 鈥淵our love, support and appreciation meant so very much to her and was a sustaining gift in her life.鈥
Her entertainment career spanned eight decades across film, television and the stage, and appeared in several notable films including 鈥淲e鈥檙e Not Married!鈥 and 鈥淭heresa国际传媒 No Business Like Show Business,鈥 but she is best remembered for her turn in 鈥淪outh Pacific.鈥
The screen version of 鈥淪outh Pacific鈥 received three Academy Award nominations and won for best sound, while Gaynor was a best actress nominee for a Golden Globe.
The role of the love-sick nurse Nellie, created on Broadway by Mary Martin, had been eagerly sought by Hollywood stars. Sinatra helped Gaynor land it.
She was starring with him in 鈥淭he Joker Is Wild,鈥 when she had a one-day opportunity to audition for lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II. It was the same day she was scheduled for her biggest scene with Sinatra. When she explained her plight, he told her, 鈥淒on鈥檛 worry, I鈥檒l change the schedule.鈥
Hammerstein was impressed with Gaynor, who had already won the approval of director Josh Logan and composer Richard Rodgers. She was cast opposite Rossano Brazzi, about whom she sang 鈥淚鈥檓 in Love with a Wonderful Guy.鈥
鈥淪outh Pacific鈥 was not the turning point in her career that Gaynor had hoped it would be, and she shifted her focus from film to television, making early appearances on Donald O鈥機onnorsa国际传媒 variety series 鈥淗ere Comes Donald,鈥 and on CBS鈥 鈥淭he Jack Benny Hour.鈥 In October of 1959, she was the only women to guest star alongside Sinatra, Crosby, Dean Martin and Jimmy Durante on ABCsa国际传媒 鈥淭he Frank Sinatra Timex Show鈥 special.
Later in her career, Gaynor reinvented herself as a performing entertainer. Working with her husband and manager Jack Bean, she starred in her own musical revue that was a big draw in theaters throughout the U.S., Canada, the U.K. and Australia.
Gaynor became a mainstay in Las Vegas for several years, performing in weeks-long residencies for over a decade, notably at the Flamingo Hotel and the Riviera Hotel.
When touring with a full orchestra, a corps of dancers and backstage personnel became too unwieldy and expensive, Gaynor slimmed down the production, eventually making it a one-woman show. They continued touring every year until 2002 when Beansa国际传媒 illness required a hiatus.
鈥淚 love touring; I鈥檝e been doing it much of my life,鈥 Gaynor said in a 2003 interview. 鈥淲e go back to the same places; itsa国际传媒 like visiting friends. After the show, people come backstage to the dressing room, and we renew friendships. We send out almost 3,000 Christmas cards every year.鈥
鈥淥ff 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!鈥 the statement from Rosamonda and Reyes said, referencing a song from the musical 鈥淥n the Town鈥 that Gaynor sang in one of her revue shows.
Gaynor also starred in several television variety specials, including 鈥淢itzi...Zings Into Springs" and 鈥淢itzi...Roarin鈥 in the 20sa国际传媒.鈥 Many of the specials received nominations for Emmy Awards, with wins for choreography, lighting, art design and costume design, the last of which was awarded to Gaynor's longtime collaborator, . The specials were the subject of the 2008 documentary 鈥淢itzi Gaynor: Razzle Dazzle! The Special Years.鈥
Born Francesca Marlene de Czanyi von Gerber (Mitzi is diminutive for Marlene) in Chicago on Sept. 4, 1931, she was a part of a musically inclined family and started singing and dancing at a young age.
In a 2003 AP interview, Gaynor said she has a clear memory of her stage debut. She had been taking ballet and tap lessons and at age 7 she was scheduled for a tap routine at the dance school recital. She had neglected to use the bathroom, and when she faced the audience, a puddle formed on the stage.
鈥淚 ran kicking and screaming off the stage,鈥 she recalls. 鈥淏ut I got huge applause. So I dried off and put some lipstick on. After the next girl did a hula with batons and slipped on the wet floor, I went out and said, 鈥業鈥檓 OK now. Can I do it?鈥 And I got cheers!鈥
Gaynor and Bean married in 1954 and in 1960 bought a spacious house in Beverly Hills that became their home until his death in 2006. They rarely appeared at Hollywood events, preferring to entertain a few close friends. The couple had no children.
