Ann Blyth, renowned for her Oscar nomination and as one of the last luminaries of Hollywood’s Golden Age, has passed away at the age of 98.
Blyth’s death occurred on Wednesday, June 24, due to natural causes. The news was shared by George Pennachio of KABC through a Facebook post on Thursday, noting that she was nearing her 99th birthday by just two months.
Her journey into stardom commenced as a child actor in the 1930s, starting with radio before she transitioned into films. Throughout her extensive career exceeding 70 years, Blyth featured in numerous classic movies.
Among her most memorable roles was playing the daughter to Joan Crawford’s character in the iconic 1945 film noir, “Mildred Pierce.”
This melodrama, brought to life by director Michael Curtiz, catapulted Blyth into stardom and garnered her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress.
Blyth was just 16 when she appeared in the film as Veda, the spoiled, money-obsessed daughter of Mildred Pierce, a divorcée who struggles as a waitress to pay for her daughter’s desires, until she’s forced to make greater and greater sacrifices.
Ann Blyth, an Oscar nominee and one of the final remaining stars from the Golden Age of Hollywood, died Wednesday at 98, according to KABC’s George Pennachio; pictured in 2013 in Hollywood
The most iconic of her appearances was as the daughter of Joan Crawford’s title character in 1945’s classic film noir, Mildred Pierce (pictured)
The film was nominated for six Oscars, including Best Picture, Actress, Screenplay and Black-and-White Cinematography.
Blyth and her costar Eve Arden split the Best Supporting Actress category and went home empty-handed, while Crawford won the film’s only Academy Award.
She also played the wife of Burt Lancaster in Brute Force (1947), an even grittier noir crime film that featured some of the most extreme violence featured on screen up to that time.
Blyth was also a talented singer, and her soprano voice made her a popular choice for luscious Hollywood musicals of the 1950s, including director Vincente Minnelli’s Kismet, The Great Caruso, Rose Marie and The Student Prince.
She proved to be adept with more down-to-earth roles in biopics later in the ’50s with The Buster Keaton Story (starring Donald O’Connor as the iconic silent film star and filmmaker) and The Helen Morgan Story.
She played the eponymous 1920s and ’30s torch singer in the latter film, which reunited her with Mildred Pierce director Michael Curtiz and paired her with a young Paul Newman.
Both films were failures – both at the box office and with critics – and Blyth retired from the film industry after their dismal reception, never to make another movie.
Later in the decade, the actress began working in theatre and on television.
She starred in productions of The King And I, The Sound Of Music and Show Boat, all of which showed off her musical talents, while on TV she was a popular guest star on Wagon Train, The Twilight Zone and Murder, She Wrote, among several other shows.
Mildred Pierce was nominated for six Oscars, including Best Picture, Screenplay, Black-and-White Cinematography and Supporting Actress nominations for Blyth and costar Eve Arden. Crawford was the film’s only winner for Best Actress; (L–R) Jo Ann Marlowe, Ann Blyth and Joan Crawford
Blyth was also a talented singer, and her soprano voice made her a popular choice for luscious Hollywood musicals of the 1950s, including director Vincente Minnelli’s Kismet, The Great Caruso, Rose Mari and The Student Prince; pictured in 1950 in a promotional image
Later in the decade, the actress began working in theatre and TV. She starred in productions of The King And I, The Sound Of Music and Show Boat, while on TV she was a popular guest star on Wagon Train, The Twilight Zone and Murder, She Wrote, among other shows; seen in 1945