Raquel Welch, ‘Fantastic Voyage’ Star, Dies at 82

One of the Nineteen Sixties signature display stars has died. Raquel Welch handed away on Wednesday morning. Her dying was confirmed by relations who informed TMZ she died following a “brief illness.” Welch was 82 years outdated.

Welch’s breakthrough as a film star got here in 1966, when she appeared within the sci-fi basic Fantastic Voyage. Directed by Richard Fleischer, the movie adopted a staff of scientists and army officers as they shrink down and enter the physique of an injured man by way of tiny submarine with the intention to restore his broken mind.

That similar yr, Welch cemented her newfound celeb in One Million Years B.C., a caveman journey image. Welch spoke solely a handful of traces within the movie (she was a cavewoman, in spite of everything), however her distinctive costume — primarily only a fur bikini — made her an instantaneous intercourse image of the period. The poster of Welch in her One Million Years B.C. look grew to become one of the vital common of its time.

Welch remained busy all by the late Nineteen Sixties and into the Nineteen Seventies. Her most notable productions embody the unique model of Bedazzled, the western 100 Rifles, the homicide thriller The Last of Sheila, and the provocative adaptation Myra Breckinridge, based mostly on the novel by Gore Vidal. Playing the title position, Welch proved herself a daring threat taker, showing in a movie that tackled controversial material.

Welch stayed busy all by the Nineteen Eighties and into the ’90s, doing an increasing number of TV work, and showing quite a few instances on Broadway. She additionally had a memorable visitor spot on Seinfeld, taking part in a fictional (and surprisingly aggressive) model of herself within the Season 8 episode “The Summer of George.”

Welch was a Golden Globe winner for her work in 1973’s The Three Musketeers, and she or he acquired a star on the Hollywood (*82*) of Fame in 1994. And these signature performances in Fantastic Voyage and One Million Years B.C. — and a few of her iconic display photographs — will probably be remembered for a really very long time.