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NEED TO KNOW
- Diane Keaton’s official cause of death has been confirmed on her death certificate
- The actress died in California at age 79 on Saturday, Oct. 11
- Keaton’s family told PEOPLE on Wednesday, Oct. 15, that the Oscar winner died of pneumonia
Diane Keaton‘s official cause of death has been confirmed.
On Wednesday, Oct. 15, the Oscar winner’s family told PEOPLE in a statement that Keaton died of pneumonia at age 79 on Saturday, Oct. 11.
A death certificate obtained by PEOPLE on Thursday, Oct. 16, confirms primary bacterial pneumonia as her immediate cause of death and that she had it for days before her death. The document lists no other significant contributing conditions and says Keaton will be cremated.
“The Keaton family are very grateful for the extraordinary messages of love and support they have received these past few days on behalf of their beloved Diane, who passed away from pneumonia on October 11,” read the statement.
They added, “She loved her animals and she was steadfast in her support of the unhoused community, so any donations in her memory to a local food bank or an animal shelter would be a wonderful and much appreciated tribute to her.”
BACKGRID
A friend of the Annie Hall actress recently told PEOPLE, “She declined very suddenly, which was heartbreaking for everyone who loved her. It was so unexpected, especially for someone with such strength and spirit.”
“Even longtime friends weren’t fully aware of what was happening,” the insider added after noting that her family “chose to keep things very private.”
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One person who did spend time with the Godfather star recently was Grammy and Oscar-winning songwriter Carole Bayer Sager. “I saw her two or three weeks ago, and she was very thin,” Sager, who co-wrote Keaton’s son “First Christmas” told PEOPLE in a separate interview. “She had lost so much weight.”
Sager recalled being “stunned by how much weight she’d lost” when she saw Keaton again after spending time in different parts of California due to the wildfires in January.
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Keaton never married, and she is survived by her two children, daughter Dexter and son Duke, whom she welcomed via adoption in 1996 and 2001.
