Disney Legend Glynis Johns passed away at 100 years old on Thursday, January 4th, 2024. Her manager confirmed that she died from natural causes.

Johns played a strong feminist known as Winifred Banks in Disney’s 1964 Mary Poppins. Her role as a suffragette would become one of the defining moments in her long, impressive career. In fact, in a tribute to Johns, it was revealed that Walt Disney personally selected her to play Winifred Banks.

Johns was born on October 5th, 1923, in Pretoria, South Africa. The young actress made history early in her career after receiving a degree to teach dance by age 10. From there, she would go on to win several medals for dance, and by 1938, she was appearing in her first feature film, South Riding. She went on to act in 49th Parallel in 1941, which was known in America as The Invaders. Johns broke more records when she went on to play a leading role in the theatrical production of Peter Pan at age 19.

It wasn’t until the early ’50s that Johns took a role with The Walt Disney Studios. Johns starred as Mary Tudor in Disney’s The Sword and the Rose. 45 years later, Johns was inducted as a Disney Legend. Of course, Johns’ most famous work with Disney was her role in Mary Poppins. The musical earned 13 Academy Award nominations and five Oscars. In Disney’s tribute to Johns, the company includes a quote from film critic Leonard Maltin, where he notes, “She lights up the screen the minute she appears [in Mary Poppins]. She makes every minute count, and her amusing suffragette song is most enjoyable.”

In 1960, Johns earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her role in The Sundowners, where she played Mrs. Firth. Then in 1973, she received a Tony Award for her portrayal of Desiree Armfeldt in Stephen Sondheim’s A Little Night Music. Sondheim was once quoted admitting that her performance of “Send in the Clowns” was his favorite.

Johns also graced smaller screens in television shows like The Cavanaughs,  General Electric Theatre, Batman, Cheers, and Murder She Wrote. You may even recognize her name from her own series, Glynis.

Johns performed in dozens of feature films and theatrical productions throughout her career. You can see her in archival footage in the documentary Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious: The Making of ‘Mary Poppins’ Disney referred to the actress as “everyone’s favorite sister suffragette,” and the actress will truly be missed. Our thoughts are with Johns’ family and friends.

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