May Britt, the Swedish actor whose marriage to Sammy Davis Jr in 1960 sparked controversy due to US attitudes towards interracial marriage, has died at the age of 91. Her son Mark Davis confirmed the news, stating that she died of natural causes on 11 December at Providence Cedars-Sinai Tarzana medical center in Los Angeles.
Born Maj-Britt Wilkens in Sweden in 1934, Britt began her acting career after being scouted by Italian film-makers. She appeared in several Italian films before landing a role in the 1956 adaptation of War and Peace. She later emigrated to the US and starred alongside Marlon Brando in The Young Lions and Robert Mitchum in The Hunters, with her breakthrough role coming in 1959's The Blue Angel.
Britt married Sammy Davis Jr in November 1960, converting to Judaism beforehand. At the time, interracial marriage was illegal in many US states, and the couple faced harassment and death threats. The controversy even affected Davis's political involvement; he postponed the wedding until after the 1960 election to avoid alienating voters, and the couple was subsequently disinvited from President Kennedy's inauguration gala.
After marriage, Britt stopped acting as 20th Century Fox declined to renew her contract. She later said she never regretted the loss of her career, stating, 'I loved Sammy and I had the chance to marry the man I loved.' The couple had three children: daughter Tracey and adopted sons Mark and Jeff. They separated in 1967 and divorced in 1968.
Following the divorce, Britt resumed acting in television and film, with her final role in 1988. She married Lennart Ringquist in 1993; he died in 2017. Britt is survived by her sons, sister, and grandchildren. Her daughter Tracey predeceased her in 2020.
