Two days after Jamie Lee Curtis announced that her sister Kelly Lee Curtis had died at the age of 69, new details surrounding her cause of death have been shared.
The actress, who was the eldest daughter of Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh, died of natural causes, the Blaine County coroner’s office of Idaho confirmed to US Weekly. She had been in hospice care for the week prior to her death on May 30, per the outlet.
In a tribute to her sister, Jamie called Curtis her “first friend and lifelong confidant.” Jamie continued, “She was jaw droppingly beautiful, and a talented actress. She played a mean game of hearts, collected turtles, loved her family, nature, music, thrifting, travel, Facebook, and Pokémon Go. She was proud of her Danish roots and Hungarian Jewish ancestry and was a devoted American patriot.”
Born June 17, 1956, in Santa Monica, California, Curtis began acting as a child and would go on to graduate from Skidmore College with a degree in business in 1972. Initially worked as a stockbroker, she later studied acting at the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute.
After landing a small role in 1983’s Trading Places alongside her sister and featuring in the 1987 German comedy film Magic Sticks, Curtis played the lead in the 1991 Italian horror film The Devil’s Daughter. The actress had a recurring role as Lieutenant Carolyn Plummer on the first season of UPN series The Sentinel and appeared in episodes of TV shows like The Equalizer, Hunter, Silk Stalkings, and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.
In a heartfelt obituary to Curtis shared by Wood River Chapel, she was remembered as having “always signed off any message or farewell with a Hungarian blessing, Isten Veled, God is with you.” The tribute added, “Isten Veled to our sister of the sun and the moon, Kelly.”
