“Granny” actress Irene Ryan’s death
The actress Irene Ryan passed away at 70 after suffering a stroke during a performance of the Broadway musical "Pippin".
Jessie Irene Noblitt, born on October 17, 1902, in El Paso, Texas, is best known for her role as Daisy May “Granny” Moses on the hit television show The Beverly Hillbillies, a role she received two Emmy nominations for.
She died doing what she loved
Despite her friend and fellow Beverly Hillbillies cast member Nancy Kulp trying to persuade her not to, Irene Ryan still went to perform on the Broadway musical Pippin in New York. On stage, she suffered a stroke and passed away a few days later on April 26, 1973.
Some of the pallbearers at her funeral were co-stars from Beverly Hillbillies, and also the shows creator Paul Henning. The actress’s body was interred in a mausoleum crypt at the Woodlawn Memorial Cemetery in Santa Monica, California.
At the time of her passing, Irene Ryan had an estimated net worth of $1 million, a smaller fortune she donated to the Irene Ryan Foundation, a foundation she created to provide scholarships for aspiring actors.