Eartha Kitt’s Daughter Shares Sweet Memories of Her Mother on the Anniversary of Her Passing

Eartha Kitt.
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NEED TO KNOW

• Eartha Kitt’s daughter recalls her mother’s final moments.
• Kitt Shapiro’s 2021 memoir, Eartha & Kitt: A Daughter’s Love Story in Black & White, details her mother’s life and legacy.
• She writes: “Tears were streaming down her face. And she was screaming with this sort of—this primal, animal-like sound.”

Eartha Kitt’s daughter, Kitt Shapiro, shared a poignant account of her mother’s final hours on Christmas Day in 2008.

In her memoir, Eartha & Kitt: A Daughter’s Love Story in Black & White, Shapiro reflects on the legendary life of Kitt, who captivated audiences as Catwoman in the late 1960s and created holiday classics, including the iconic 1953 song “Santa Baby.”

According to Shapiro, the enduring appeal of “Santa Baby” serves as a cherished reminder of her mother’s love. “When Santa Baby comes on at Christmas, it makes me smile. Hearing her voice always warms my heart and reminds me how blessed I was to have been loved so deeply,” she stated.

However, the holiday season also brings bittersweet memories, as Shapiro reflects on her mother’s final days. Kitt, a performer known for her unwavering commitment, had never missed a show—until September 2008, when she performed with the Virginia Symphony for the last time.

Shortly afterward, the family learned that Kitt had been diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer.

Eartha Kitt.

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Shapiro recalled, “She was in such intense pain that she could barely stand up. But the second she stepped out onto the stage and the spotlight hit her, it was as if the pain just vanished. She was able to perform for ninety straight minutes, belting it out as if she were fifty years old. You would never in a million years have guessed that she was actually eighty-one. Or critically ill.”

However, after her performance, Kitt “came off the stage and practically collapsed,” prompting the family to cancel all remaining engagements.

Despite undergoing chemotherapy, Shapiro noted that her mother appeared to have “given up the fight,” knowing that performing would no longer be part of her life.

On November 24, 2008, just two days before Thanksgiving, Kitt was admitted to the hospital. A doctor informed the family that she likely had three months to live, though even that prognosis was uncertain.

After deciding she would be more comfortable at home, the family brought her back to Connecticut for hospice care.

Eartha Kitt and Kitt Shapiro.

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Shapiro recounted the lightheartedness that persisted during such a challenging time. “For most people, this would have been a sad time. We weren’t going to lose our senses of humor now,” she wrote. “I remember propping her up with pillows at one point and asking, perhaps a little too loudly, ‘Are you OK?’ And she looked at me and said, ‘I can hear you just fine. I’m dying. I’m not deaf!'”

As her condition continued to decline, a hospice nurse explained to Shapiro that her mother would likely “just fade away,” suggesting a peaceful exit.

Yet, Shapiro noted, “It was not.” On Christmas Day 2008, as they watched television together, the situation became increasingly dire.

Shapiro reflected, “By now, my mother had lost her speech entirely. She had stopped speaking about two days earlier. But she had still remained alert. Her eyes were wide open. She could also still make herself heard. And that’s what she was doing right now, loud and clear. She literally left this earth screaming at the top of her lungs.”

In her memoir, Shapiro shared a heart-wrenching moment: “Tears were streaming down her face. And she was screaming with this sort of—this primal, animal-like sound. That’s when I realized that she was actually going. But not willingly.”

In a poignant farewell, she described her desperation to ensure her mother’s release: “In typical mother-daughter fashion, I soon began screaming right back at her. ‘You can go!’ I cried, my lips close to her ear, holding her to me with all my might. Then, all of a sudden, she fell silent. And I knew that she was gone.”

Shapiro later remarked on the poetic nature of her mother’s passing, noting that Kitt, celebrated for her sultry rendition of “Santa Baby,” chose to leave this world on Christmas Day. “She knew the importance of timing,” Shapiro said with a laugh, “and in a way, it was poetic.”