UPDATE: Tanya Roberts has passed away.
Tanya Roberts, who played a Bond girl in A View to Kill and starred in That '70s Show, is still alive despite exaggerated reports of her death. Roberts began her career as a model in various commercials before making her film debut in the graphic 1974 horror film Forced Entry. Her bombshell looks led to roles in many underseen TV pilots and films throughout the late '70s before she replaced Shelley Hack in the fifth season of Charlie's Angels. The show was canceled shortly after her addition to the cast, but Roberts rebounded strongly by gaining international recognition as Bond girl Stacey Sutton in A View to Kill. Despite mixed reviews at the time, the 1985 Bond entry starring Roger Moore was a huge commercial success that set the stage for the rest of her career.
To audiences too young to catch her memorable Bond role, Roberts is undoubtedly known for playing Donna Pinciotti's attractive mother, Midge Pinciotti, on the hit Fox sitcom That '70s Show. The series, set from 1976 to 1979 that follows a group of fun-loving teenagers in Wisconsin, saw Roberts return to the blonde bombshell persona she successfully adopted earlier in her career, with one of the show's funniest running jokes being Eric, Kelso, and Hyde's attraction to her, much to Donna's chagrin. Though she left the show in 2001 to take care of her ill husband, Barry Roberts, she returned for guest appearances in the sixth and seventh seasons, reminding fans of just how valuable she was to the show's hilarious ensemble. Fans and the media paid tribute to Roberts's lengthy career after news broke that she passed away on January 3, but now it appears those reports were greatly mistaken.
Per TMZ, Tanya Roberts is still alive despite early reports that she had died. Roberts was hospitalized and put on a ventilator after she collapsed unexpectedly at her home on Christmas Eve. Her publicist and close friend, Mike Pingel, originally broke the news after her husband, Lance O'Brien, informed him of her passing. Now, Pingel says O'Brien received a call from the hospital early Monday morning saying she was indeed still alive.
After her departure from That '70s Show, Roberts managed to score bit parts in various TV shows while tending to her husband Barry. She appeared in one episode of the short-lived WB sitcom Off Centre, which was created by American Pie director Paul Weitz and focused on two twentysomethings in New York City. Following spots on the 2005 sitcoms Eve and Barbershop: The Series, she officially retired from acting that year, shortly before Barry sadly passed away in 2006.
Nearly every major media outlet reported on the Bond star's death, amplifying the confusion surrounding the news and raising the question of why exactly her husband and publicist were given tragically incorrect information. That being said, the fresh news should certainly provide enormous relief to her dedicated fans, whom she made a huge effort in recent years to stay engaged with through weekly Q&A chats on Facebook and Zoom. Hopefully Roberts continues to make a speedy recovery amid the bewildering media storm currently happening.
Source: TMZ