Raquel Welch died in February of a cardiac arrest, aged 82, but was also suffering from Alzheimer’s – something she had never mentioned publicly.
The star’s family had previously honoured her six-decade-long career in the acting world, mourning that she had died after a “brief illness” – and her death certificate now reveals exactly what that illness was.
It states that the iconic actress died at 2:25 am at her Los Angeles home, as reported by TMZ.
In the USA, where Raquel was based, statistics show that nine out of 10 patients will die within minutes if they have a cardiac arrest outside a hospital, meaning that her odds of survival were already low.
The star, who first gained prominence with a role in Fantastic Voyage, and later became renowned for films like One Million Years B.C, left family, friends and fans heartbroken.
In the latter, Raquel wandered around a surreal prehistoric film set in a world where dinosaurs and cavemen co-existed, wearing little more than a deerskin bikini – and the starring role earnt her status as a sex symbol.
Playboy Magazine subsequently declared her “the most desired woman” of the 1970s, while Time magazine placed her memorable outfit in its “Top 10 Bikinis In Pop Culture” list.
However, Raquel was far from just a pretty face: her acting skills were highly regarded too, leading to her clinching a Golden Globe Award in 1974.
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The star added 30 high-profile movies to her achievements list, while the 1980s also saw her achieve a Broadway role in New York, where she and Lauren Bacall were voted Women of the Year.
She also took on some challenges, including playing a male-to-female transsexual in Myra Breckenridge.
Explaining why she was perfect for the part, the movie’s producer, Robert Fryer, reasoned that “if a man were going to become a woman, he would want to become the most beautiful woman in the world [so] he would become Raquel Welch!”
At that time, there was very little public representation or portrayal of transsexual identity, meaning that her role attracted a huge amount of attention.
Meanwhile, in another movie, Kansas City Bomber, production had to be quickly called to a halt after it was revealed that Raquel had broken her wrist while attempting a perilous stunt.
There was a six week break in programming, but Raquel didn’t rest on her laurels, instead being photographed at fellow actress Elizabeth Taylor’s lavish 40th birthday party – despite allegedly being uninvited by the star.
She also flew to Budapest during that interim period and managed to fit in a cameo on Bluebeard opposite Richard Burton.
Later in her career, she launched a wig collection, which was very commercially successful, and a health and fitness book in which she divulged her love of yoga and recommended healthy eating options for fans.
Her final film, five years before her death in 2017, was How To Be A Latin Lover.
In the aftermath of her death, numerous celebrities paid their respects, including Reese Witherspoon who marvelled: “I loved working with her on Legally Blonde. She was elegant, professional and glamorous beyond belief. Simply stunning.”
Little House on the Prairie actress Melissa Gilbert added: “There are people one aspires to be like and then there are those you know you’ll just never be like because they are just so individually undeniably themselves. This woman (Welch) was one of those people. RIP.”
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