Raquel Welch, a longtime actress, international sex symbol andGolden Globewinner, has died, PEOPLE confirms. She was 82.Welch “passed away peacefully early this morning after a brief illness,” her manager Steve Sauer confirmed to PEOPLE on Wednesday.Sauer added, “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 her daughter Tahnee Welch.“TMZwas first to reportthe news.Welch made her film debut in the mid 1960s, with breakout roles in 1966’sFantastic VoyageandOne Million Years B.C.that same year.She would go on to star in dozens of films, including 1973’sThe Three Musketeers, which earned her a Golden Globe for best actress in a motion picture comedy or musical.Raquel Welch.Donato Sardella/GettyNever miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human-interest stories.Other titles under her belt include100 Rifles,The Prince and the Pauper, Chairman of the Board,Legally Blondeand more. Her final film role was in 2017’sHow to Be a Latin Lover.She alsomemorably performed “I’m a Woman"withCherback in 1975 onThe Cher Show.Welch became a pin-up after flaunting her curves in 1966’s camp classicOne Million Years B.C.But behind the glamour, the star (born Jo Raquel Tejada) was a hardworking single mom whose career as a sex bomb helped herraise two kidsaftersplitting from her first husbandin 1964.Raquel Welch inOne Million Years B.C.(1966).GettyThe actress, whose bookBeyond the Cleavagebecame a bestseller, previously told PEOPLE as she celebrated her 70th birthday in 2010, “I never thought life was going to give me something for nothing.“Raquel Welch in 1967.Silver Screen Collection/GettyBorn in Chicago to a Bolivian-born engineer and his American wife, “By age 7 I knew I wanted to be an actress,” Welch said at the time.She continued, “My parents enrolled me in a theater program. You could get away from some of the painfulness of real life. I always had flights of fancy.“Crediting her resilience to her mom, Josephine, she added at the time, “I’ve had a great life — and it’s not over yet!”
Raquel Welch, a longtime actress, international sex symbol andGolden Globewinner, has died, PEOPLE confirms. She was 82.
Welch “passed away peacefully early this morning after a brief illness,” her manager Steve Sauer confirmed to PEOPLE on Wednesday.
Sauer added, “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 her daughter Tahnee Welch.”
TMZwas first to reportthe news.
Welch made her film debut in the mid 1960s, with breakout roles in 1966’sFantastic VoyageandOne Million Years B.C.that same year.
She would go on to star in dozens of films, including 1973’sThe Three Musketeers, which earned her a Golden Globe for best actress in a motion picture comedy or musical.
Raquel Welch.Donato Sardella/Getty
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human-interest stories.
Other titles under her belt include100 Rifles,The Prince and the Pauper, Chairman of the Board,Legally Blondeand more. Her final film role was in 2017’sHow to Be a Latin Lover.She alsomemorably performed “I’m a Woman"withCherback in 1975 onThe Cher Show.
Welch became a pin-up after flaunting her curves in 1966’s camp classicOne Million Years B.C.But behind the glamour, the star (born Jo Raquel Tejada) was a hardworking single mom whose career as a sex bomb helped herraise two kidsaftersplitting from her first husbandin 1964.
Raquel Welch inOne Million Years B.C.(1966).Getty
The actress, whose bookBeyond the Cleavagebecame a bestseller, previously told PEOPLE as she celebrated her 70th birthday in 2010, “I never thought life was going to give me something for nothing.”
Raquel Welch in 1967.Silver Screen Collection/Getty
Born in Chicago to a Bolivian-born engineer and his American wife, “By age 7 I knew I wanted to be an actress,” Welch said at the time.
She continued, “My parents enrolled me in a theater program. You could get away from some of the painfulness of real life. I always had flights of fancy.”
Crediting her resilience to her mom, Josephine, she added at the time, “I’ve had a great life — and it’s not over yet!”
source: people.com
