Thursday, singer, dancer and actress Eartha Kitt died at age 81 of colon cancer, a condition for which she had recently received treatment at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in New York, according to friend and publicist Andrew Freedman.

The cancer was first discovered two years ago and treated at that time, but after a period of remission, it unfortunately recurred.

Freedman told Reuters by telephone from Los Angles that the singer had performed until two months before and that she had appearances scheduled through the following year, as well.

Kitt, who throughout her career, won two Emmy Awards and was also nominated for a third one and for a Grammy Award, too, described herself as a „sex kitten,” while her and Lena Horne were deemed as having been among the first African-American sex symbols.

Eartha Kitt’s hit songs included „C’est Si Bon,” „Let’s Do It” and „Just an Old Fashioned Girl,” whereas her „Santa Baby” song rendered people to associate her with Christmas.

The latter hit was recorded back in 1953 and this year, before she died, Kitt received the gold record for it.

In the 1960s, the singer started performing throughout Europe, after having voiced her opinions against the Vietnam War at a White House luncheon chipped off some of her popularity in the United States.

Nevertheless, when she returned, she was very well received by the audiences.

Eartha Kitt made her film debut in 1948 in „Casbah,” but where her television work is concerned, she was best known for her portrayal of Catwoman in the 1960s TV series „Batman.”