Now, To Eternity: Deborah Kerr Dead
Deborah Kerr, the British ballet dancer turned movie star, whose in-the-surf clench with Burt Lancaster in “From Here to Eternity” is one of the most famous kisses in Hollywood history, has died at the age of 86. Nominated six times for an Oscar, Kerr never won the best actress award despite starring opposite the likes of Cary Grant and David Niven, with whom she is shown here in “Bonjour Tristesse.”
In “From Here to Eternity,” Kerr played Karen Holmes, the sexy adulterous wife living on an Army base in Hawaii. Her scene with Lancaster on the beach (pictured here) with the waves washing over their bodies was considered on the verge of scandalous in its time. Those of us who were young children in the 1960s are more familiar with Kerr’s role as Anna in the Rodgers & Hammerstein musical “The King and I.” Pace tua, Deborah!
