Debbie Reynolds, mother of Carrie Fisher, dies at 84

Hollywood legend Debbie Reynolds has died one day after her daughter, Carrie Fisher, passed away. She was 84.

Reynolds died on December 28 after being brought to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles for a medical emergency, reported Variety.

On December 27, her daughter, the Star Wars actor, author and screenwriter, Carrie died of complications from a heart attack she had suffered four days earlier while on a flight from London to LA.

“She wanted to be with Carrie,” her son Todd Fisher said. Reynolds was taken to the hospital from Carrie’s Beverly Hills house after suffering a stroke.

The veteran actor released a statement about Carrie’s death, thanking fans for their support and for embracing “the gifts and talents of my beloved and amazing daughter.” 

Born Mary Frances Reynolds in 1932, she got her first break at the age of 16, when Warner Bros. signed the newly crowned Miss Burbank as a contract player and gave her the stage name “Debbie.” 

The actor quickly became America’s Sweetheart, appearing in Singin’ in the Rain (1952) and marrying pop idol Eddie Fisher, with whom she had two children. Fisher left Reynolds for Elizabeth Taylor in 1958, setting in motion a messy divorce and public relations scandal that Carrie would later liken to the Aniston-Pitt-Jolie saga of the 21st century.

The Reynolds-Fisher divorce became final on May 12, 1959, Carrie was 2 at the time and Taylor and Fisher were wed less than four hours later. Taylor would go on to divorce Fisher in 1964 after she fell for Richard Burton on the set of Cleopatra (1963).

In 2010, Reynolds recalled how she found out her husband was cheating on her lonely at home while Fisher was away on tour, she called Taylor at home to chat. To her surprise, Fisher answered the phone.