Sponsored message
Audience-funded nonprofit news
radio tower icon laist logo
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
Subscribe
  • Listen Now Playing Listen

This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.

This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.

News

Actor Tony Curtis Dead at 85

Truth matters. Community matters. Your support makes both possible. LAist is one of the few places where news remains independent and free from political and corporate influence. Stand up for truth and for LAist. Make your year-end tax-deductible gift now.

Longtime Hollywood star Tony Curtis has died, reports the New York Times. He was 85. The actor died of cardiac arrest at his home in Las Vegas.

Curtis was born Bernard Schwartz in the Bronx, New York, in 1925. After serving in World War II he took up acting classes, and fell in love with the craft. He worked in theatre until 1950 when he began working in film, and became a fan favorite, particularly for his good looks. He married MGM contract player Janet Leigh in 1951; their daughter Kelly was born in 1956, followed by daughter Jamie Lee in 1958.

Two of Curtis' most iconic roles came in the 1960s in Some Like it Hot and Spartacus. He transitioned in to television to some extent in the 1970s, and also married six more times and had four more children. In recent years he published a second autobiography, and helped his seventh wife, Jill VandenBerg, operate the non-profit Shiloh Horse Rescue in Nevada.

You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our connected community. We are free to tell the full truth, to hold power to account without fear or favor, and to follow facts wherever they lead. Our only loyalty is to our audiences and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen our community.

Right now, LAist has lost $1.7M in annual funding due to Congress clawing back money already approved. The support we receive before year-end will determine how fully our newsroom can continue informing, serving, and strengthening Southern California.

If this story helped you today, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.

Your tax-deductible donation keeps LAist independent and accessible to everyone.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief

Make your tax-deductible year-end gift today

A row of graphics payment types: Visa, MasterCard, Apple Pay and PayPal, and  below a lock with Secure Payment text to the right