‘Mary Poppins’ Star Glynis Johns Dead at 100

Publicity portrait of British actor Glynis Johns from 1962, United States. (Photo by Param
Paramount Pictures/De Carvalho Collection/Getty
Paul Bois

British actress Glynis Johns, forever known as Mrs. Banks in Disney’s hit 1964 musical Mary Poppins, has died at the age of 100.

Mitch Clem, manager for Johns, told CNN that the actress died “peacefully” on Thursday morning in Los Angeles at the assisted living home where she has resided for the past few years.

“Glynis powered her way through life with intelligence, wit, and a love for performance, affecting millions of lives,” Clem said in a statement on Thursday. “She entered my life early in my career and set a very high bar on how to navigate this industry with grace, class, and truth.”

“Her light shined very brightly for 100 years,” Clem added. “She had a wit that could stop you in your tracks powered by a heart that loved deeply and purely.”

Actress David Tomlinson, Glynis Johns, Matthew Garber, Karen Dotrice in a scene from the movie “Mary Poppins” (Donaldson Collection/Getty)

Johns is survived by her grandson and her three great-grandchildren.

“As a teenager, Johns scored her first film role in the 1938 romantic drama South Riding. She went on to appear in a number of movies throughout the 1940s, including the war-era drama 49th Parallel in 1941, for which she earned a best acting award from the National Board of Review,” noted CNN.

Danny Kaye and Glynis Johns publicity portrait for the film ‘The Court Jester’, 1955. (Paramount/Getty)

“Born in South Africa and raised in the United Kingdom, Johns starred in a number of Hollywood films and TV shows throughout the 1950s until her big break in 1960, when she starred alongside Deborah Kerr and Robert Mitchum in the family-driven drama The Sundowners as Mrs. Firth,” it added.

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