The Tragic Death Of That '70s Show Star Tanya Roberts
UPDATE 1: On Jan. 4, 2021, during an interview with Inside Edition, Tanya Roberts' boyfriend, Lance O'Brien, received a call that the actor had not died as he had believed. "The hospital is telling me she is alive. They are calling me from the ICU team," an emotional O'Brien said. At the time of this writing, the condition of Roberts — who remains hospitalized — is unclear.
UPDATE 2: The very next day, TMZ reported that Tanya Roberts passed on the evening of Jan. 5, 2021 while at the hospital. Despite any previous confusion, it was Roberts' boyfriend, Lance O'Brien, who told the outlet he received a call from her doctor confirming the news.
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Tanya Roberts, the TV star and model who played Midge Pinciotti on That '70s Show, passed away on Jan. 3, 2021. Roberts reportedly collapsed when she returned to her Los Angeles home after walking her dogs on Christmas Eve, according to TMZ. She was put on a ventilator at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in L.A., but passed away a few days after at the age of 65. The outlet noted that Roberts' death was not related to the coronavirus.
Roberts' friend and publicist, Mike Pingel, told CNN: "I'm devastated, I've been friends with Tanya for over 20 years. She was full of energy and we always had a wild time together. She was truly an Angel and I will miss her so much."
Roberts had a remarkable career and was an icon of the 70s and 80s in both TV and film. She landed what most would consider her biggest role in the 1985 James Bond film A View to a Kill. Roberts played the character Stacey Sutton alongside Roger Moore, who played Bond himself and Christopher Walken, who played the villain, Max Zorin. It's tragic to see Roberts go, so here's a look at some major moments in her life.
From Playboy to James Bond: Tanya Roberts' film trajectory
Tanya Roberts was born on Oct. 15, 1955 in New York City. Her given name was Victoria Leigh Blum, per CNN, and she launched her career as a model before she broke into the acting world. Throughout her life, Roberts was in several TV commercials, according to TMZ, and modeled for Ultra Brite, Clairol, Cool Ray sunglasses, and Excedrin. She was also a model in Playboy.
Roberts took on the role of Julie Rogers on Charlie's Angels for one season from 1980-1981. She also took major roles in film projects like the 1982 film The Beastmaster and the 1984 retelling of the Tarzan tale, Sheena: Queen of the Jungle, according to her IMDb credits.
Apart from her major role in the James Bond film A View to a Kill, perhaps Roberts' most notable role was her casting in That '70s Show. However, she had to step away from the show in a full-time capacity for one major reason. Here's what happened.
Why Tanya Roberts left 'That '70s Show'
Tanya Roberts took on the role of Midge Pinciotti, mother to Donna in That '70s Show in 1998, according to CNN. Roberts played her character as a ditzy blonde and became iconic for her role in the first three seasons of the sitcom. However, after Season 3, she left the show to take care of her husband, screenwriter Barry Roberts. She made occasional guest appearances in Seasons 6 and 7, but never fully returned. Meanwhile, her husband passed away from a terminal illness in 2006, according to Ultimate Classic Rock.
In recent years, Roberts remained active and connected on social media through live chats with fans, which she posted about on Twitter. Roberts obviously left a mark on this platform because countless fans have since posted tributes to her. One person wrote: "Thank you [Tanya Roberts] for portraying one of my favorite sitcom moms ever. [Y]ou will be missed."
Meanwhile, the official James Bond Twitter account also recognized Roberts' impact on the entertainment world. "Producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli said: 'We are saddened to hear of the passing of Tanya. She was a very lovely person and shall always be remembered by Bond fans as Stacey Sutton in A View To A Kill.'" We wish her friends and family nothing but peace as they mourn this tragic, unexpected loss.