Tawny Kitaen’s cause of death has been revealed to be from heart disease and opioids.
The Bachelor Party star died from dilated cardiomyopathy, the Orange County Coroner’s Office stated. Other factors leading to the actress’ death included clogged arteries, antidepressants, sedatives, nerve pain medication and opioids.
Kitaen was public about her struggles with alcohol and drug addiction. In 2006, she was charged for cocaine possession and, in 2009, for driving under the influence.
Kitaen died on May 7 at 59 in Newport Beach, California. Her close family and friends gathered together for an intimate celebration to honor their passed loved ones,
The bombshell started her career on the game show, To Tell The Truth, in 1976. She is best known for Bachelor Party and continued her acting career in the 1984 French cult classic, The Perils of Gwendoline, and 2014’s After Midnight.
Kitaen also featured in a few classic music videos, such as Whitesnake’s “Is This Love” and “Here I Go Again.”
She married lead singer David Coverdale in 1989, but it lasted only for two years. Kitaen then went on to wed baseball star Chuck Finley in 1997, but the couple split in 2002 after he claimed that she repeatedly kicked him during a domestic dispute.
The pair shared two daughters: Wynter, 28, and Raine, 22.
Her daughters paid tribute to their mother after her mother’s passing.
”We are heartbroken and saddened to announce the death of our mom. We just want to say thank you for [sic] all of you, her fans and her friends, for always showing her support and love,” they wrote on social media. “You gave her life every day. We miss her and love her and we know her legacy will love forever.”
Kitaen’s brother, Jordan Kitaen, found peace knowing his sister passed quickly and not in pain.
“The lack of suffering, the quick nature of it all, and the lack of intent, I think those are things we thought we knew but it’s just good to get them verified. I think there’s closure to that facet of her death,” he told Fox News.
