Raquel Welch’s cause of death has been disclosed, revealing that the actress died of a cardiac arrest following a battle with Alzheimer's at her home in southern California.
The actress died aged 82 on February 15, following what was described as “a brief illness” by her business manager Steve Sauer at the time.
Now her death certificate, which was obtained by TMZ, revealed an Alzheimer’s diagnosis that was not publicly disclosed prior to her passing.
It also cited cardiac arrest as another contributory factor, reporting that she suffered heart failure.
Sauer confirmed the news of her death earlier this year in a statement, writing: “Her career spanned over 50 years starring in over 30 films and 50 television series and appearances.
“The Golden Globe winner, in more recent years, was involved in a very successful line of wigs.
“Raquel leaves behind her two children, son Damon Welch and daughter Tahnee Welch.”
Welch came to the wide attention of moviegoers for her role in the 1966 sci-fi adventure Fantastic Voyage, followed by her iconic appearance later that year in the prehistoric drama One Million Years B.C.
Although Welch had just a few lines of dialogue in the film, images of her appearance in a fur-skinned bikini transformed her into a global sex symbol.
She won a Golden Globe Award for her performance in 1974’s The Three Musketeers and was nominated again in 1987 for the film Right to Die.
Welch was one of the first women to play the lead role – rather than the romantic interest – in a Western.
She starred in revenge tale Hannie Caulder in 1971, which provided inspiration for Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill in 2003, according to the director.
Other screen credits in the late 1960s and early ‘70s include starring roles in Bedazzled, Bandolero!, 100 Rifles and Myra Breckinridge.
The star’s portrayal of strong female characters was credited with reshaping the stereotype of the traditional sex symbol, and her rise to fame was also seen as eclipsing Hollywood’s embrace of the blonde bombshell.
Admirers took to Twitter to mourn the star, including TV host Rosie O’Donnell, actor Chris Meloni and writer-director Paul Feig, who worked with Welch on Sabrina the Teenage Witch and called her “kind, funny and a true superstar whom I was pretty much in love with for most of my childhood. We’ve lost a true icon.”
Welch was born Jo-Raquel Tejada in Chicago and raised in La Jolla, California. Welch was a divorced mother when she met actor-turned-press-agent, Patrick Curtis.
Curtis became her manager and second husband and helped shape her into a glamour girl with hundreds of magazine covers and a string of movies, plus exercise videos and books like The Raquel Welch Total Beauty and Fitness Program.
