How did Dorothy West die?

Answer 1

It depends upon which Dorothy West is meant. Dorothy West [October 11, 1932-September 4, 1991], the first Grammy awardee for best female country vocal performance, died as the result of a car accident several days earlier. West's driver was going 30 mi/48 km over the posted speed limit. He lost control of the vehicle, which vaulted into the air. West had a ruptured spleen and lacerated liver. The first of four surgeries removed her spleen. But the succeeding three to stop her liver from bleeding were unsuccessful. In fact, West died, at 9:43 a.m., during the last such surgery. Dorothy West [June 2, 1907-August 16, 1998], the novelist of 'The Living Is Easy', may have died from complications of an age-related condition. For she was 91 years old at the time of her death. Indeed, her obituary in 'Newsweek' of August 31, 1998 indicated that the news services from Martha's Vineyard, where she lived, gave no cause of death. And no information is available as to the date or cause of death for Dorothy West [b. 1890s], the silent film actress of 1908-1916, and the film writer of 'The Golden Supper'. But it's possible that she's the Dorothy West to whom the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints [www.lds.org] gives the dates of April 13, 1891-February, 1982 at the Social Security death index portion of their Family History online database. If such is the case, she also may have died from complications of an age-related condition, at the age of 90-91 in Santa Monica, California.

Answer 2

Born December 10, 1914, she died of a heart attack at age 82 on September 22, 1996