Mona Freeman Cause of Death: How the Actress and Painter Passed Away

Mona Freeman was a popular actress and painter who starred in many movies and TV shows in the 1940s and 1950s. She was known for playing teenage roles even when she was in her late twenties. She later became a portrait painter and retired from acting. She died on May 23, 2014 at the age of 87 in her Beverly Hills home. But what was the cause of her death?

Early Life and Career

Mona Freeman was born as Monica Elizabeth Freeman on June 9, 1926 in Baltimore, Maryland. She grew up in Pelham, New York, where she was a model while in high school. She was selected as the first “Miss Subways” of the New York City transit system in 1940. She moved to Hollywood after being signed to a movie contract by Howard Hughes, who later sold her contract to Paramount Pictures .

She made her film debut in Till We Meet Again (1944) and became a teenage star in movies like Junior Miss (1945), Dear Ruth (1947), That Brennan Girl (1946), and The Heiress (1949). She also co-starred with Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis in Jumping Jacks (1952) and with Robert Mitchum and Jean Simmons in Angel Face (1952). She complained of being typecast as a naive teenager and tried to break out of the image by taking more mature roles .

Television and Painting

Freeman’s film career slowed down in the 1950s, but she continued to work in television. She appeared in several episodes of The United States Steel Hour, Perry Mason, Maverick, Wanted: Dead or Alive, Wagon Train, The Millionaire, and Branded. Her last on-screen appearance was in the TV movie Welcome Home, Johnny Bristol (1972) .

Freeman was also a talented painter who concentrated on portrait and landscape painting after 1961. Her best-known portrait is that of Mary See, the founder of See’s Candies, which is displayed in many of the company’s stores . She also painted celebrities like Cary Grant, Ronald Reagan, and Rock Hudson .

Personal Life and Death

Freeman was married twice. Her first husband was Patrick Nerney, whom she married in 1945 and divorced in 1953. They had one daughter, Monie Ellis, who also became an actress . Her second husband was H. Jack Ellis, whom she married in 1961 and remained with until his death in 1992 . She had six grandchildren and two great-grandchildren .

Freeman died on May 23, 2014 at the age of 87 in her Beverly Hills home after a long illness . Her daughter did not disclose the exact cause of her death, but said it was natural causes . Freeman was cremated and her ashes were scattered at sea .

Mona Freeman was a versatile and talented actress and painter who left behind a legacy of memorable performances and beautiful artworks. She will be remembered as one of the stars of Hollywood’s golden age.

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