Farrah Fawcett, 1947- 2009
Legendary style icon Farrah Fawcett succumbed to cancer today at the age of 62. Throughout her nearly 40 years in the entertainment industry, Fawcett set record sales and gained the public’s affection of almost everything she touched.
After being voted Most Beautiful in 1965 at WB Ray High School in Corpus Christi, Texas, Fawcett starred in commercials for Noxema, Ultra Brite toothpaste, Wella Balsam Shampoo, and even the Mercury Cougar car.
Fawcett broke into the Hollywood scene in 1976 when Aaron Spelling cast her as Jill Monroe, a sexy and smart private investigator on “Charlie’s Angels.” Although she only appeared on the television show for one season, her popularity spawned a new hair frenzy – every woman in the mid-70s wanted the “Farrah Do” — and her 1976 sultry “red bathing suit” poster sold more than 8 million copies (and continues to hold the record for poster sales).
Fawcett continued to gain acclaim as an actor and even more as a style and beauty trendsetter. After appearing in dramatic roles and on the stage, Fawcett posed nude for the first time in the December 1995 issue of Playboy – it remained the best-selling issue of the magazine for the 1990s.
Fawcett most recently received her third Emmy in 2003 for per performance in “The Guardian” and chronicled her battle with cancer in the yet-to-be-released documentary, “A Wing and a Prayer.” She leaves behind her longtime beau, Ryan O’Neal, and their 24-year-old son, Redmond.