Sacheen Littlefeather, the Native American actress and activist who turned down Marlon Brando’s best actor Oscar in 1973, died Sunday night, according to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. She was 75 years old.
Littlefeather’s death was posted on the academy’s Twitter account. Although no cause of death was revealed, numerous news sites claimed Littlefeather had breast cancer.
Littlefeather was born Marie Louise Cruz on November 14, 1946, in Salinas, California. She changed her name in her 20s when she researched her Native American background and became an activist.
She produced one of the most spectacular moments in Oscar history on March 27, 1973. Littlefeather walked to the stage wearing moccasins and a buckskin outfit. Brando’s name was called for winning best actor for his work in The Godfather to humbly deliver Brando’s regrets for accepting the award because of Hollywood’s treatment and portrayal of Native Americans.
Her acceptance speech on behalf of Brando was welcomed with a mix of boos and cheers. She claimed to have seen actor John Wayne being stopped from storming the stage when she was speaking.
“People were making money off of that racism of the Hollywood Indian. Of course, they’re going to boo. They don’t want their evening interrupted.”
A squad of security agents escorted Littlefeather offstage at the Oscars. She said Hollywood had been boycotting her for years, referring to her as “red listed.”
The academy officially apologized to Littlefeather for the abuse she suffered due to her Oscars presentation earlier this year, over 50 years later. Former academy President David Rubin recognized the “unwarranted and unjustified” insults she endured in a June letter.
Brando subsequently expressed sorrow for putting Littlefeather in that position.
“I was distressed that people should have booed and whistled and stomped, even though perhaps it was directed at myself,” he told then-talk show host Dick Cavett. “They should have had the courtesy to listen to her.”