Diane Keaton, who won an Academy Award for best actress for her portrayal of the titular quirky character in Annie Hall and portrayed Kay Adams in the three Godfather films, has died. She was 79.
Her death in California was reported by People magazine. Further details were not immediately available.
She also played warm, off-center mothers in such comedies as Baby Boom and three Father of the Bride films and sparkled in the The First Wives Club and the two Book Club movies.
Woody Allen wrote the Anne Hall role specifically for her, based on their real-life romance. She also starred for him in Sleeper, Love and Death, Interiors, Play It Again, Sam and Manhattan. Allen credited Keaton as his muse during that portion of his career.
With her idiosyncratic wardrobe in Annie Hall, complete with fedora hat and baggy pants, Keaton inspired a “look.”
She had an acclaimed turn as a Catholic school teacher who frequents singles bars in Looking for Mr. Goodbar and starred in the thriller The Little Drummer Girl and co-starred with Jessica Lange and Sissy Spacek in Crimes of the Heart.
Early in her career, she was a charismatic, adorable talk-show guest, charming viewers with her half-completed sentences, eruptive giggles and shy warbles.
Keaton also played a playwright/mother who becomes involved with a nefarious womanizer (Jack Nicholson) in Something’s Gotta Give, good for her fourth best actress Oscar nomination. She also was nominated for her in Reds and Marvin’s Room.
More to come …
