Mitzi Gaynor, LegendarySouth PacificActress, Dies at 93: An 'Altogether Glorious Human Being'

Mar. 15, 2025

Mitzi Gaynor has died at the age of 93, her management team announced in astatementon Thursday, Oct. 17.

“It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved friend and client Mitzi Gaynor. She passed away peacefully today of natural causes at the age of 93,” Rene Reyes and Shane Rosamonda wrote on social media.

“For eight decades she entertained audiences in films, on television and on the stage,” they continued. “She truly enjoyed every moment of her professional career and the great privilege of being an entertainer.”

Frederick M. Brown/Getty

Reyes and Rosamonda called Gaynor 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!”

“… She often noted that her audiences were ‘the sunshine of my life.’ You truly were,” they wrote.

Gaynor was born Francesca Marlene de Czanyi von Gerber in Chicago in 1931. Her father was a musician, and her mother was a dancer. She soon followed in her mother’s footsteps, training as a ballerina, and she was determined to make it as a star from a young age.

“My family was very supportive,” she remembered toCloserin 2024. “My family gave me every opportunity to experience theater, music and art. What a gift that was! We weren’t wealthy in monetary terms, but we were certainly wealthy in love.”

Ethel Merman and Mitzi Gaynor with the ensemble in 1954’s ‘There’s No Business Like Show Business’.20th Century-Fox/Getty

20th Century-Fox/Getty

Her debut came in 1950’sMy Blue Heaven, a musical. She also had a supporting role in 1951’sTake Care of My Little Girl. Her first starring role came in the 1951 musicalGolden Girl. Her biggest success at Fox was 1954’sThere’s No Business Like Show Business, in which she appeared alongside Ethel Merman, Marilyn Monroe and Donald O’Connor. She toldCloserthat she became “lifelong friends” with Merman and O’Connor during filming.

Mitzi Gaynor and Rossano Brazzi on the set of ‘South Pacific’.20th Century-Fox/Getty

That same year, she married Jack Bean, who became her manager. Remembering how they met, she told CBS, “The doorbell rang at the Chateau Marmont. And I open up the door, and there’s this man standing there. He has the bluest eyes I’ve ever seen in my life, he’s about 5'11”. God, I loved him." They were together until his death in 2006.

Martin Mills/Getty

Her biggest success came in 1958’sSouth Pacific, based on the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical of the same name. She starred as the lead, Nellie Forbush, and performed songs like “I’m in Love with a Wonderful Guy” and “I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Outta My Hair.”

South Pacificbecame the highest-grossing film of the year, and Gaynor received a Golden Globe nomination for the role.

Mitzi Gaynor and Jack Bean in 1986.Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via Getty

Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via Getty

Mitzi Gaynor in 2011.Frazer Harrison/Getty

Frazer Harrison/Getty

One of her appearances onThe Ed Sullivan Showcoincided withThe Beatles’ second appearanceon the talk show in 1964, filmed in Miami Beach. She had top-billing on the episode, and after the taping, Paul McCartney asked for her autograph.

“I loved them,” she toldEast Bay Timesin 2009. “They were divine. They were gentlemen, they were sweet… and it was nice to be part of history.”

Gaynor, who received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960, also began performing in concerts beginning with a 1961 show in Las Vegas. Her early costumer for her shows wasBob Mackie, whose legendary career was just getting started. She told theLos Angeles Timesin 1993 that she “just about fainted” the first time she saw his sketches, but he was so young at the time she initially mistook him for a fan.

Gaynor performed on stage for over five decades and felt most comfortable when she was in front of a crowd. “Home life is just fine, but I go on tour to get my rest,” she toldThe New York Timesin 1982, during a 28-city tour.

source: people.com