Kimmarie Johnson, Beverly Hills, 90210 Actress, Dies at 50

Kimmarie Johnson, a model and actress who appeared on Beverly Hills, 90210 and in the film Dude, Where's My Car?, has died at age 50. Her niece, Rhonda Scott, confirmed the death, first to TMZ and then in a statement to People.

Johnson died on Wednesday afternoon, November 4, in Los Angeles. Scott said Johnson suffered a heart event at her home in Los Angeles on Tuesday, October 27, was taken to Cedars-Sinai Hospital, and was diagnosed with a heart aneurysm condition. Scott told TMZ that Johnson died peacefully on November 4.

The family's statement

Scott paid tribute to her aunt in the statement she gave to People on Thursday, November 5.

"She radiated a light so strong and bright," Scott said. "People who came in contact with her felt nothing but positive energy. We will miss her tremendously and will continue to honor her life forever."

TMZ was first to report the news, and People, USA TODAY, Entertainment Weekly and Page Six all carried the family's confirmation on November 5.

A screen career that began in the late 1990s

Johnson played Judy in a 1998 episode of Beverly Hills, 90210, the Season 9 episode titled "The Following Options." The teen drama ran from 1990 to 2000 and made her part of one of the best known television casts of that decade, alongside Jason Priestley, Shannen Doherty, Jennie Garth, Ian Ziering, Luke Perry, Brian Austin Green and Tori Spelling.

Two years later she appeared in the 2000 comedy Dude, Where's My Car?, which starred Ashton Kutcher and Seann William Scott. She was credited as Kim Marie Johnson in the role listed as Jumpsuit Chick #5. Her other television credits included the Pamela Anderson series V.I.P., where she appeared in a 2000 episode, and Wanda at Large, where she appeared in 2003. Her film credits also included Shadow Fury and Break a Leg, and People reported that a 2017 appearance in the series Tucker's War was listed as her last screen appearance.

Pageants, modelling and a second career in beauty

Johnson was a native of Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania, near Pittsburgh. Before acting, she worked as a flight attendant and competed in beauty pageants. She was a former Miss Pennsylvania USA and took part in the Miss USA pageant, and she built a modelling career alongside her screen work.

She stepped away from acting in 2003 after the birth of her son and turned to producing. She was an executive producer on the 2005 film The Last Eve, made with Korean American director Young Man Kang. In 2011 she founded her own beauty brand, SkinGlow by Kimmarie, and she told Voyage LA last year that she was proud of the line because it let her speak with women about health and skincare.

Johnson was still working as a model at the time of her death, according to her Instagram profile. People reported that she made what appeared to be her final red carpet appearance on April 22 at the Los Angeles premiere of Michael, posed for the cover of a digital edition of Grazia Slovenia magazine in August, and shared her last Instagram post on August 27, a post made with a fashion house.

Johnson is survived by her son, Cameron Nino, a Los Angeles based musician who was born in 2003.