Full Story: nytimes.com

Jean Simmons Dies at 80; Actress Whose Talent Exceeded the Parts She Played

Jean Simmons, the English actress who made the covers of Time and Life magazines by the time she was 20 and became a major midcentury star alongside strong leading men like Laurence Olivier, Richard Burton and Marlon Brando, often playing their demure helpmates, died on Friday at her home in Santa Monica, Calif. She was 80.

The cause was lung cancer, according to Judy Page, her agent.