(CNN) Actress Stella Stevens, who appeared in a number of films in the 1960s and ’70s including “The Nutty Professor” and “The Poseidon Adventure,” died Friday of Alzheimer’s disease at the age of 84, said her son, actor and producer Andrew Stevens.
Jerry Lewis and Stella Stevens in The Nutty Professor (1963)
She “had been in hospice with stage seven Alzheimer’s for quite some time,” her son told CNN.
“Alzheimer’s is an insidious disease that not only afflicted my mother, but also my grandmother and great aunt. Hopefully my mother’s work will be remembered for her collaborations with some of the biggest icons in entertainment,” said Andrew Stevens.
His mother had more than 200 film and television roles, according to a Golden Globes obituary, which named her the new star of the year in 1960 after her debut in “Say One for Me” with Bing Crosby and Debbie Reynolds.
Her most famous roles were 1963’s The Nutty Professor, starring Jerry Lewis, and 1972’s The Poseidon Adventure, in which she was promoted as part of an “all-star cast” led by Gene Hackman and Ernest Borgnine.
Her other films included “Girls! Girls! Girls!” with Elvis Presley. She followed her film career with many TV roles in Police Story, Love Boat, Flamingo Road and others.
Stella Stevens is survived by her only son and three adult grandchildren.
Correction: A previous version of this story misrepresented the date of Stevens’ death.