Mickey Mouse Club star Annette Funicello dies at 70

[Mr. Television]

http://www.latimes.com/news/obituari...,5659102.story


'Mickey Mouse Club' star Annette Funicello dies at 70




Annette Funicello was one of the original members of the Mouseketeers.
CAPTIONS

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By Dennis McLellan

April 8, 2013, 10:11 a.m.

Annette Funicello, the dark-haired darling of TV's “The Mickey Mouse Club” in the 1950s who further cemented her status as a pop-culture icon in the '60s by teaming with Frankie Avalon in a popular series of “beach” movies, died Monday. She was 70.

Funicello, who was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1987 and became a spokeswoman for treatment of the chronic, often-debilitating disease of the central nervous system, died at Mercy Southwest Hospital in Bakersfield, Walt Disney Co. spokesman Howard Green said.

Funicello and her husband, Glen Holt, had moved from the Los Angeles area after a 2011 fire gutted their home in Encino.



Bob Iger, Disney’s chairman and chief executive, said: “Annette was and always will be a cherished member of the Disney family, synonymous with the word 'Mousketeer,' and a true Disney legend. She will forever hold a place in our hearts as one of Walt Disney’s brightest stars, delighting an entire generation of baby boomers with her jubilant personality and endless talent. Annette was well known for being as beautiful inside as she was on the outside, and she faced her physical challenges with dignity, bravery and grace. All of us at Disney join with family, friends, and fans around the world in celebrating her extraordinary life.”

Funicello was a 12-year-old dance-school student when Walt Disney saw her performing the lead role in “Swan Lake” at her dance-school's year-end recital at the Starlight Bowl in Burbank in the spring of 1955.

She joined a group of other talented young performers hired to become Mousketeers on “The Mickey Mouse Club,” the children's variety show that debuted on ABC in October 1955 and quickly became a daily late-afternoon ritual for millions of young Americans.


Like her fellow female Mousketeers, Funicello wore a mouse-eared beanie, a blue pleated skirt, and a white, short-sleeved turtleneck sweater with her name emblazoned in block letters across her chest.

But there was something special about the Mouseketeer with the curly black hair that unexpectedly turned her into the ensemble cast's biggest star.

Funicello made her acting debut on “The Mickey Mouse Club” serial “Adventure in Dairyland.” She also appeared in two of the popular “Spin and Marty” serials about a Western dude ranch for boys, with Tim Considine and David Stollery in the title roles. And in 1958, Disney showcased his prized Mousketeer in her own “Annette” serial.

Mr. Disney, as Funicello always called her boss, also licensed Annette lunch boxes, Colorforms dolls, coloring books, comic books and even mystery novels featuring her in fictionalized adventures.



After “The Mickey Mouse Club” ended production in 1958 and wet into reruns, the 15-year-old Funicello was the only Mouseketeer to remain under exclusive contract to the Disney studio.

She made her feature-film debut in “The Shaggy Dog,” a 1959 comedy starring Fred MacMurray. It was the first of four Disney feature films she appeared in over the next six years, including “Babes in Toyland,” “The Misadventures of Merlin Jones” and “The Monkey's Uncle.”

Funicello received a big career boost when Disney agreed to loan her out to American International Pictures to make “Beach Party,” the song-filled, low-budget 1963 comedy in which she was first teamed on the big screen with Avalon.

In the wake of the success of “Beach Party,” Funicello and Avalon co-starred in “Muscle Beach Party,” “Bikini Beach,” and “Beach Blanket Bingo.”

[Zoneboy]

That's sad, I knew she had been in poor health recently.

Annette

[Mr. Television]

She was a class lady all the way. R.I.P. Annette.

[DYNAMIC D]

This sad news just came in not long ago...

LOS ANGELES - Annette Funicello, star of Disney's "Mickey Mouse Club" television program in the 1950s, has died, Disney said on Monday.


"We're sorry to report beloved Disney Mouseketeer and iconic teen star Annette Funicello has passed away at age 70," the Walt Disney TV and movie studio said on its official fan club's Twitter account.


Her family told television program "Extra" that Funicello died in hospital in Bakersfield, California, while in a coma due to suffering from multiple sclerosis, which was diagnosed in 1987. It was not immediately clear when she died.


Funicello was America's peaches-and-cream girl, portraying the innocence of the 1950s and 1960s, first as a Disney Mouseketeer and then as the star of a series of beach movies.


But in later life, she was remembered for what many say was her greatest role: a valiant fight against multiple sclerosis, a crippling disease of the nervous system which reduced the once perky and vivacious singer and actress to depend progressively on a cane, a walker and finally a wheelchair.

[Penny Lane]

I grew up with Annette and The Mickey Mouse Club in the '50's She was always my favorite! She had battled MS for many years. She handled it with grace. So sad to hear of her passing. God Bless her.

[catlover79]

Such a sweet and classy lady who fought MS like a champion for over 25 years. God rest her.

They really do come in threes:

Phil Ramone

Roger Ebert

Annette Funicello

[AKA]

Very sad, though it's a blessing that her prolonged, undeserved suffering is finally over. Poor thing. May her family and loved ones find comfort during this difficult time.

[Regulus]

[The Flying Dutchmans]

Yes Annette did battle with MS since 1987, but she had many victories against the disease too. But as with all sicknesses, eventually the body can't hold out anymore. I am really gonna miss you little Mouskateer.

[catlover79]

sweet Annette, you fought MS like a champion for over 25 years. God rest you...

[Penny Lane]

Originally Posted by catlover79

sweet Annette, you fought MS like a champion for over 25 years. God rest you...

[Zoneboy]

[tv star collector]

I'll never forget my favorite Mouseketeer. She was my very first crush.

[Regulus]

I'm watching an episode of The Mickey Mouse Club in tribute to the latest Fallen Star, Annette Funicello.

[KJH278]

R.I.P Annette Funinjello