Kelly Curtis, actor and sister of Jamie Lee Curtis, dead at 69
Kelly Curtis, an actor and the sister of Jamie Lee Curtis, has died aged 69.
Curtis was the eldest child of Hollywood actors Tony and Janet Leigh Curtis, and went on to star in various films throughout the 1980s and ‘90s, including Magic Sticks, The Devil’s Daughter, and Trading Places, in which she starred with her sister.
The actor’s passing was announced in an Instagram post by Jamie Lee on May 31st, where she wrote: “A warm aloha to my older sister, Kelly Lee Curtis. She passed away this morning. In her home. In nature. At peace.”
Adding that her older sister was “my first friend and lifelong confidant”, the Halloween star added: “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.”
No cause of death was revealed at this time, but the statement noted that Curtis would “be remembered for her loving generosity, fierce opinions, endless curiosity, unique style, and her powdered, almond, crescent cookies at Christmas, hence her name, Auntie Cookie.”
After her stint in the acting world, Curtis took the director’s chair for the 2018 documentary Marby Jets Are Go, while also serving as Jamie Lee’s assistant on a number of her biggest films, including Freaky Friday and Christmas with the Kranks.
In a subsequent post, the star reflected on how she and her sister had a tumultuous relationship in their early years due to being the children of divorced parents, before they became close again following her marriage to Christopher Guest in 1984.
Sharing a series of portrait photos of themselves together, she noted in that post, “I miss her today but am buoyed by the knowledge that she is at peace.”
Jamie Lee concluded her original post by writing: “Kelly always signed off any message or fare thee well with a Hungarian blessing… Isten Veled, God is with you. Isten Veled to my sister of the sun and the moon, my Tai. I’ll see you on down the line.”
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