3/9/2023 0 Comments Miss kitty![]() On August 16, 1989, Blake died of liver failure brought on by viral hepatitis at Mercy General Hospital in Sacramento, California. In 1984, she was the recipient of the society's annual Courage Award, which was presented to her by then U.S. She became a supporter of the American Cancer Society and made fundraising appearances throughout the country. Declining health and death īlake was a heavy cigarette smoker and had surgery for oral cancer in 1977. The refuge provides sanctuary for free-ranging African hoofed wildlife, most of which were originally destined for exotic animal auctions or hunting ranches. In 1997, the Amanda Blake Memorial Wildlife Refuge opened at Rancho Seco Park in Herald, California. Blake reportedly was a one-time board member of the Humane Society of the United States. In 1985, she helped finance the start-up of the Performing Animal Welfare Society and devoted a great deal of time and money in support of its efforts, including travels to Africa. īlake joined with others in 1971 to form the Arizona Animal Welfare League, today the oldest and largest "no-kill" animal shelter in the state. They were some of the first to breed cheetahs successfully in captivity they raised seven generations of cheetahs. Kemo lived in an animal compound at her home, at which she and husband Frank Gilbert ran an experimental breeding program for cheetahs. She had been known for bringing her pet lion, Kemo, onto the Gunsmoke set. She instead devoted more time to her animals. Animal welfare Īfter Gunsmoke, Blake went into semi-retirement at her home in Phoenix, Arizona, and took on few film or television projects. Blake married Frank Gilbert in 1967 and divorced him in 1982. Blake felt like it was home to her on the days when she was not needed. After the divorce from Whitman, she would go to the 'saloon set' of Gunsmoke. She was the third performer inducted, after Tom Mix and Gary Cooper, selected in 1958 and in 1966.īlake married Don Whitman in 1954 and divorced him in 1956. In 1968, Blake was inducted into the Hall of Great Western Performers at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City. ![]() Later, after a Gunsmoke reunion film, she made two feature-film appearances: in The Boost, a drug-addiction drama starring James Woods and Sean Young, and B.O.R.N, both in 1988. In 1957, Blake guest-starred as Betty Lavon-Coate in the episode titled "Coate of Many Colors" on Rod Cameron's crime drama, State Trooper. ![]() She did appear on a number of television shows, including a recurring comedy routine on The Red Skelton Show as a celebrity on Hollywood Squares, Tattletales, and the 1970s revival of Match Game and comedy appearances on the Dean Martin Celebrity Roast. īecause of her continuing role on television, Blake rarely had time for films. On February 27, 1974, Blake brought a lion named Kemo on to the Gunsmoke set. īlake became best known for her 19-year stint as the saloon-keeper Miss Kitty on the television series Gunsmoke from 1955 to 1974. She appeared in a few Hollywood films, such as the 1952 western Cattle Town and in the starring role of Miss Robin Crusoe, a 1954 adaptation of the Robinson Crusoe adventure. In the late 1940s, Blake was signed to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer as the studio saw her as its next Greer Garson.
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