Iconic film actress Olivia de Havilland has died aged 104.
The classic star of Hollywood and two-time winner of the Academy Award for Best Actress, died peacefully in her sleep at her home in Paris, France on Saturday.
She recently spoke about death as she celebrated her birthday at the beginning of this month, explaining she was hoping to slip away while sipping champagne.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, she said: “If I must leave this life, I would like to do so ensconced on a chaise lounge, perfumed, wearing a velvet robe and pearl earrings, with a flute of champagne beside me and having just discovered the answer to the last problem in a British crossword.”
Olivia de Havilland has died aged 104 in Paris, France (Image: Getty Images)
De Havilland’s major works of her cinematic career spanned from 1935 to 1988, and she was one of the leading actresses of her time.
Born in Tokyo, Japan, she rose to prominence in the 1930s as Errol Flynn’s lass in a series of adventure films like Captain Blood and The Adventures of Robin Hood.
One of her best-known roles was as Melanie Hamilton in the 1939 film classic Gone with the Wind, for which she received her first of five Oscar nominations, the only one for Best Supporting Actress.
The British-American actress appeared in 49 feature films during her career (Image: Getty Images)
De Havilland earned her first Academy Award for 1946’s To Each His Own, a movie based on a small-town woman, who gives birth to a child outside marriage but is forced to give up on him in order to avoid shame.
The star was praised for her performance as Virginia Cunningham in Anatole Litvak’s drama The Snake Pit in 1948, one of the first films to attempt a realistic portrayal of mental illness and an important exposé of the harsh conditions in state mental hospitals, according to film critic Philip French.
De Havilland appeared in William Wyler’s period drama The Heiress in 1949, the fourth in a string of critically acclaimed performances.
The Oscar-winning star is known for appearing in 1939’s Gone With the Wind (Image: Gamma-Keystone via Getty Images)
For her performance, she received the New York Film Critics Award, the Golden Globe Award, and the Academy Award for Best Actress—her second Oscar.
Throughout her career, she appeared in 49 feature films.
She retired from acting in the 1970s, and her last on-screen appearance was in the 2009 documentary I Remember Better When I Paint.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
