Annie Cordy, Prolific Actress and Disney Voice Talent, Dead at 92

Annie Cordy, Belgian actress and Disney voice artist, has died at the age of 92. According to The Daily Mail, the actress enjoyed a successful 66-year career, with her role as Willow in the French translation of Pocahontas standing out.

Throughout her career, Cordy appeared in 50 films and television series. Apart from Pocahontas in 1995, she appeared in Royal Affair in Versailles in 1954, The Singer From Mexico in 1956 and her final role in 2018 in the film Illiterate.

Cordy, real name Leonie, Baroness Cooreman, was born in 1928 in Belgium and soon became multi-talented within the French entertainment industry after moving to Paris. Apart from acting and voice acting, she was also an accomplished singer who achieved chart-topping success with the ballad "La Ballade de Davy Crockett."

Her Baroness title was awarded by King Albert II of Belgium back in 2004, followed by the Commander of the Order of the Crown in 2013. According to The Daily Mail, Cordy's cause of death was reportedly cardiac arrest at her home in Vallauris, France. Attempts to revive her at the scene were unsuccessful, according to reports.

"Annie Cordy was an accomplished artist whose humor and joie-de-vivre represented so well the Belgian spirit that we love so much," Belgian Prime Minister Sophie Wilmes wrote on Twitter, according to USA Today. "She won over the hearts of many generations. She will be sorely missed. My sincere condolences to her family and loved ones."

Annie Cordy was een volleerd artieste van wie de humor en levensvreugde zo goed de "belgitude" vatte waar we zo van houden. Ze veroverde de harten van vele generaties. Ze zal erg gemist worden. Mijn oprechte deelneming aan haar familie en geliefden.

— Sophie Wilmès (@Sophie_Wilmes) September 4, 2020

Cordy also had success with films and music like performing a song for The Bridge on The River Kwai, starring in a stage production as the French version of Hello, Dolly!, and providing her voice to films like Once Upon a Forest and Brother Bear in 1993 and 2003.

According to The Daily Mail, several French celebrities and personalities shared their memories of the late actress on social media. French TV host Christophe Beaugrand-Gerin posted a touching message to Cordy thanking her for her career.

"I'm heartbroken tonight. Mrs. Annie Cordy, you have given us so much joy, energy and emotions. We won't forget you," he wrote in a tweet translated by The Daily Mail.