Britt was known for movies such as ‘The Blue Angel’ and ‘The Hunters.‘

Swedish actress May Britt, former wife of Sammy Davis Jr., dies at 91

Britt was known for movies such as 'The Blue Angel' and 'The Hunters.'

By Raechal Shewfelt

Raechal Shewfelt

Raechal Shewfelt is a writer at **. She has been working at EW since 2024. Her work has previously appeared on Yahoo and in American *Journalism Review* and *The Shreveport Times*.

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December 19, 2025 2:11 p.m. ET

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May Britt stars in 'The Blue Angel' in 1959. Credit:

20th Century-Fox/Everett

May Britt, the Swedish actress who faced racism for her 1960 marriage to Rat Pack star Sammy Davis Jr., died of natural causes Dec. 11 at a hospital in Los Angeles, son Mark Davis told *The Hollywood Reporter*. She was 91.

Britt was known for films such as the 1959 drama *The Blue Angel *and *Murder, Inc*., in which she sang and danced, as well as the 1956 production of *War and Peace*, in which she costarred alongside Audrey Hepburn and Henry Fonda, and the Korean War-set *The Hunters*, with Robert Mitchum and Robert Wagner, in 1958.

Born in Switzerland, Britt was discovered by Italian producer Carlo Ponti when she was 18. She did several international films before landing in America in the late '50s.

Britt met Davis after one of his performances in L.A. and asked her to come to a party, which their daughter, Tracey Davis, wrote about in her 2014 book *Sammy Davis: A Personal Journey With My Father*.

Sammy Davis Jr. and wife May Britt photographed in 1965.

Max B. Miller/Fotos International/Getty

By June 1960, the couple announced that they were engaged. They faced serious backlash for their relationship at a time when interracial marriage was forbidden in 31 states.

Per* THR*, the younger Davis' book alleged that they were pressured into postponing their nuptials by none other than Frank Sinatra, Davis' costar in the 1960 movie *Ocean's Eleven*. The friend of presidential candidate John F. Kennedy wanted them to wait until after the election to marry, despite invitations having already gone out. Davis, who had campaigned for Kennedy, waited.

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The book also says the couple was disinvited to the inauguration gala three days before it was to be held, because Kennedy didn't want to upset Southern members of Congress.

They welcomed Tracey in 1961, and their adoption of sons Mark and Jeff followed.

The couple divorced in 1968.

Britt appeared in a handful of projects afterward, including episodes of *Mission: Impossible *and *The Most Deadly Game, *and the 1976 horror film* Haunts.*

Britt is survived by her sons — daughter Tracey Davis died in 2020 — as well as a sister, Margot, and grandchildren, Andrew, Ryan, Sam, Montana, Greer, and Chase.**

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