One Of The Last Surviving Classic Hollywood Era Stars Has Died At 96

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The world has lost a legend.

On Monday, November 29, actor Lorenzo Llamas announced on his Facebook page that is mother, legendary actress Arlene Dahl had passed away.

“Mom passed away this morning in New York,” he wrote. “She was the most positive influence on my life. I will remember her laughter, her joy, her dignity as she navigated the challenges that she faced. Never an ill word about anyone crossed her lips. Her ability to forgive left me speechless at times. She truly was a force of nature and as we got closer in my adult life, I leaned on her more and more as my life counselor and the person I knew that lived and loved to the fullest.”

He offered his sympathies to his stepfather, Marc Rosen, who he described as “loving.” Rosen and Dahl were together for the last 37 years of her life. Llamas said he “made her life so wonderful and joyous.”

Llamas ended his tribute post with, “Love you mom forever.”

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Rosen himself posted a tribute to his late wife, writing, “Thank you to all of my family and friends who have reached out to me. This photo of Arlene is my favorite. It was taken by Bill King while we were engaged. It captures her beauty and radiance. She was luminous spirit and I will love her always.”

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Dahl was born on August 11, 1925 and after some modeling following high school, she briefly signed with Warner Brothers before signing a long-term deal with MGM. She had leading roles in the classic movies  Scene of the Crime (1949), Ambush (1950), The Outriders (1950),  Three Little Words (1950), and Watch the Birdie (1950), just to name a few. 

After retiring from acting in 1960, though it wouldn’t really stick, Dahl shifted her focus to business. She would go on to become vice president at the ad agency Kenyon and Eckhardt, and later Sears Roebuck as director of beauty products.

From 1981-1984 she appeared on the soap opera One Life To Live and made guest appearances on several shows including two of her son Lorenzo’s shows, Renegade and Air America. Her final acting credit, and her first feature film in almost two decades, was in Night of the Warrior, which co-starred her son Lorenzo.

She was one of the last surviving stars of the Classic Hollywood Era, and she will be greatly missed. She is survived by her husband, Ronan, sons Lorenzo Llamas and Rounsevelle Andreas Schaum, daughter Christina Carole Holmes, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.