Former actress and sex symbol Raquel Welch dead at 82

Silver screen siren Raquel Welch has died at the age of 82 after a brief illness, her family has confirmed.

Actress and sex symbol Raquel Welch has died after a “brief illness”, aged 82.

Welch’s manager Steve Sauer revealed she had died peacefully early on Wednesday morning, without providing further details.

“The legendary bombshell actress of film, television and stage, passed away peacefully early this morning after a brief illness,” Mr Sauer said in a statement.

Raquel Welch shot to stardom in the 1966 film One Million Years BC.

Welch died at the age of 82 after a brief illness. Picture: Getty Images for CDG

“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,” the statement said.

The dazzling beauty in the 1960s. Picture: Getty Images

Raquel Welch in 1979. Picture: Getty Images

The US actress became an international sex symbol after appearing in a deerskin bikini in One Million Years BC.

“I became,” she wrote in her 2010 autobiography, Beyond the Cleavage, “every male’s fantasy.”

The former beauty queen was once the world’s biggest sex symbol.

Raquel Welch with son Damon James Welch in 1996 when she received her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Picture: AP

The Golden Globe winner starred in more than 30 films – including Fantastic Voyage and The Three Musketeers – as well as over 50 television series during her lengthy career.

She also had roles in the 1968 film Lady in Cement, opposite Frank Sinatra, and the 1969 western 100 Rifles, as well as playing the groundbreaking transgender character Myra Breckinridge in the 1970 film.

In later years, Welch made appearances on Lois & Clark, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Seinfeld, Spin City and CSI: Miami.

So sad to hear about Raquel Welch's passing. I loved working with her on Legally Blonde. She was elegant , professional and glamorous beyond belief. Simply stunning. May all her angels carry her home. 🕊️ Sending love to her family and her many fans ❤️ pic.twitter.com/FBtXhpvS25

— Reese Witherspoon (@ReeseW) February 15, 2023

She also thrilled fans with her scene-stealing supporting role as Mrs Windham-Vandermark in the 2001 film Legally Blonde opposite Reese Witherspoon, who made a moving tribute.

“She was elegant, professional and glamorous beyond belief,” Witherspoon tweeted.

“Simply stunning. May all her angels carry her home.”

She made Empire magazine’s 100 Sexiest Stars in Film History in 1995 and ranked third in Playboy’s 100 Sexiest Stars of the 20th Century.

The bombshell actress with Sam Newman at Crown Casino in 2000.

Christopher Skase and Raquel Welch at the 1989 Logies.

Raquel Welch, in Paris in 1970, was one of the world’s biggest sex symbols. Picture: AFP

Raquel Welch signs copies of her book Raquel: Beyond the Cleavage at Vroman's Bookstore in Pasadena, California in 2010. Picture: AFP

“I was not brought up to be a sex symbol, nor is it in my nature to be one,” she once said in an interview. “The fact that I became one is probably the loveliest, most glamorous and fortunate misunderstanding.”

In 1979 she posed for Playboy, but did not go fully nude.

Speaking about Welch, Hugh Hefner once said: “Raquel Welch, one of the last of the classic sex symbols, came from the era when you could be considered the sexiest woman in the world without taking your clothes off, she declined to do complete nudity, and I yielded gracefully, the pictures prove her point.”

Raquel Welch on the cover of Playboy magazine, December 1979. Picture: Playboy

The star accepts the 2001 Lifetime Achievement Award at the 16th Annual Latino Media Image Awards in Beverly Hills, California. Picture: AFP

The star was born Jo Raquel Tejada on September 5, 1940 in Chicago, Illinois to a Bolivian engineer and an American seamstress.

“The essence of who I am is a Latina,” Welch once said.

She began studying ballet at the age of seven, but gave up after 10 years when her instructor told her she did not have the right body type for professional ballet companies.

A high-school beauty queen, Welch attended San Diego State College on an arts scholarship, and married her high school sweetheart, James Welch in 1959.

The sex siren was married four times but was later happily single. Picture: FilmMagic

Soon after, she landed a job as a local TV weather girl, but left the role after giving birth, at age 19, to son Damon.

Two years later, she had a daughter, Tahnee. Both children followed their mother into show business.

Welch later married three more times but spent her final years at home in Beverly Hills, living contentedly by herself.

Raquel Welch at the How to Be a Latin Lover press conference in Beverly Hills in 2017. Picture: WireImage

“I don’t like to have a man,” the star told Piers Morgan in 2015. “Because I’m too set in my ways. I like what I do. I actually enjoy being me, and I make a very good living at it and I’m happy.”

Actor Antonio Sabato Jr was among the first to leave a tribute.

“Raquel Welch has passed away at the age of 82. Amazing beauty grace & talent.

Rest in peace,” he said in a post on Twitter.

NBA star Rex Chapman tweeted: “Raquel Welch has passed away at the age of 82.

“What a life. Rest in peace,” he added - attaching a video clip from an archived TV interview.