Legendary Turkish actress Yıldız Kenter dies at 91

Legendary Turkish actress and lecturer Yıldız Kenter passed away on Sunday, November 17. Born in October 1928, she had turned 91 this year.

Born to a British mother and a Turkish father, Kenter graduated from the Ankara State Conservatory and joined the Ankara State Theater, where she worked for eleven years.

She left the state theaters in 1959 and founded the Kent Theater Society with her brother, Müşfik Kenter. She was chosen as "Woman of the Year" in 1962 due to her services to theater.

She performed in over 100 plays throughout her 60-year career and won the "Golden Orange," the most prestigious award for cinema in Turkey, three times. She was awarded the "Adalaide Ristori" by the Italian Culture Association in 1984.

In 1989, she won the best actress award for her role in the Turkish movie Madame at the Bastia Film Festival in Corsica, France. Kenter taught acting in various schools for 37 years.

In 2007 Kenter was named UNICEF goodwill ambassador.

She also won the 1998 Muhsin Ertuğrul lifelong contribution to theater award, 1998 Presidency Grand Prize for Culture and Arts and the 1999 Best Female Actress Afife Award.

Kenter had been battling lung problems and was hospitalized earlier this week. She passed away yesterday after suffering respiratory problems due to old age.