Actress Raquel Welch passed away at age 82 after a brief illness.
The late actress was an international sex symbol during the height of her career and is known for her iconic role in the 1966 movie, One Million Years BC.
Despite her lack of dialogue in the movie, photos of the beautiful actress in the fur bikini became a cultural phenomenon.
She was featured in best-selling posters and became an iconic and international pin-up girl.
Welch also became known as a talented actress when she earned a Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture Actress in a Musical or Comedy for her role as Constance de Bonacieux in the 1974 film, The Three Musketeers.
Her impressive career span half a century, and she appeared in more than 30 movies and 50 television series.
Tributes pour in for Raquel Welch
Many tributes across social media mourned the death of the iconic actress.
Reese Witherspoon remembered working with Welch in Legally Blonde and shared a photo of the late star.
“So sad to hear about Raquel Welch’s passing. I loved working with her on Legally Blonde. She was elegant , professional and glamorous beyond belief,” Witherspoon wrote, continuing:
“Simply stunning. May all her angels carry her home. 🕊️ Sending love to her family and her many fans ❤️.”
Hollywood publicist Danny Deraney shared his favorite moment of Welch when she appeared next to Janis Joplin on the Dick Cavett show.
Another fan shared a clip of Welch playing herself in the musical Scarsdale Surprise from a Seinfeld episode.
The Muppet character Miss Piggy’s social media account shared a stunning photo of Welch with a tribute.
Raquel Welch was a reluctant sex symbol
Welch previously revealed that she wasn’t comfortable with her status as an international sex symbol.
In an interview, she spoke of her conservative upbringing and said she “was not brought up to be a sex symbol, nor is it in my nature to be one.”
“The fact that I became one is probably the loveliest, most glamorous and fortunate misunderstanding,” she added as BBC reports.
Welch also wrote about her public image in her memoir, Raquel: Beyond the Cleavage, in which she also discussed her childhood and working through Hollywood as a single mother.
Welch married four times, first to her childhood sweetheart, James Welch, with whom she had two children.
She then married producers Patrick Curtis and André Weinfeld. Her final marriage was to businessman Richard Palmer, and they divorced in 2004.
The late Hollywood star is survived by her son Damon Welch and daughter Tahnee Welch, who also worked as a model and actress.