Beverly Hills, 90210 actress Kimmarie Johnson dies aged 50 in Los Angeles

Death confirmed by her niece

The US actress Kimmarie Johnson died on 4 November in Los Angeles, aged 50. Her niece, Rhonda Scott, confirmed the death to the US website TMZ. According to Scott, Johnson died peacefully after her heart stopped beating. Johnson was best known for her role in Beverly Hills, 90210 and for her part in the 2000 comedy Dude, Where's My Car?, which starred Ashton Kutcher and Jennifer Garner. The reports describe her as an actress who had a long, if mostly supporting, screen career.

Heart event and diagnosis

According to the niece, Johnson suffered an acute heart problem at her home in Los Angeles on 27 October. She was taken to Cedars-Sinai Hospital, where doctors diagnosed a heart aneurysm condition. Johnson died on 4 November. Figures differ on the date of death: most accounts give 4 November, while one Portuguese-language report gives 27 October, the day of the heart event. All details of her illness come from the niece's account to TMZ, and the articles do not contain a separate medical statement.

Television and film career

Johnson's screen career began in 1998 with an episode of Beverly Hills, 90210, in which she played the role of Judy. Two years later she appeared in V.I.P., the action series starring Pamela Anderson. In the same year she took part in Dude, Where's My Car?, where she was one of a group of alien beauties in figure-hugging jumpsuits. The end credits list her as "Jumpsuit Chick" under the name Kim Marie Johnson. Her later independent productions included Shadow Fury, Spanish Fly and the horror film The Summer of Massacre. She appeared in the sitcom Wanda at Large in 2003, and her most recent credit was a single episode of Tucker's War in 2017.

Early life and business

Johnson came from the Pittsburgh area, where she was discovered and signed by a local modelling agency. Job offers from Vidal Sassoon, Oscar de la Renta and Benetton followed. Without any previous experience in beauty pageants, she won the title of Miss Pennsylvania USA and reached the final round of the Miss USA contest. She moved to Los Angeles in 1996, and the move came before her entry into acting. In 2011 she took a step into business by founding the skincare brand SkinGlow by Kimmarie, which carried her name into the beauty market.