Dolly star Channing dies at 97

Tributes from Broadway stars such as Kristin Chenoweth and Bette Midler poured in to honour Carol Channing, the three-time Tony Award-winning musical comedy star who delighted audiences in 5000 performances as Dolly Levi in Hello, Dolly! on Broadway and beyond. She was 97.

Publicist B. Harlan Boll said Channing died of natural causes in Rancho Mirage, California. She had two strokes in the past year.

Channing starred in other Broadway shows, but none with the magnetism of Hello, Dolly! She often appeared on television and in nightclubs.

“Channing was one of the few who paved the path for so many women in theatre and beyond,” Chenoweth wrote on Twitter. “I will forever admire and look up to you, Carol.”

Midler called Channing “a complete original” and “a legend”.

Channing’s outsized personality seemed too much for the screen, and she made only a few movies, notably

The First Travelling Saleslady and Thoroughly Modern Millie.

Over the years, Channing continued as Dolly in national tours, the last in 1996, when in her 70s. Tom Shales of The Washington Post called her “the ninth wonder of the world”.

Messages of appreciation came quickly, with the League of Professional Theatre Women saying Channing had inspired many. Veteran actress Bernadette Peters said Channing “was show business and love personified”. Viola Davis mourned: “You had a great run! Rest well.”

Broadway will honour Channing today by dimming all theatre marquees for a minute at 7.45pm.