Mrs Robinson dies

'The Graduate' star, Anne Bancroft, has died aged 73.

The Oscar-winning actress, best known for her role as Mrs Robinson, the older woman who seduced Dustin Hoffman in the 1967 film, lost her battle with uterine cancer on Monday (06.06.05) with movie director husband Mel Brooks at her bedside.

Lights were dimmed on Broadway last night (07.06.05) after news of her death emerged from Los Angeles' Cedars Sinai hospital where she was being treated.

Bancroft, who was nominated for five Oscars and made more than 60 films, was born Anna Maria Italiano in New York in 1931 but changed her name to Bancroft when she moved into the movie industry in the 1950s "because it sounded dignified."

Mike Nichols, who directed her Oscar-nominated performance in The Graduate, led the tributes to the actress, praising her "combination of brains, humour, frankness and sense."

He added: "Her beauty was constantly shifting with her roles, and because she was a consummate actress, she changed radically for every part."

But despite the iconic nature of the film, Bancroft complained two years ago that her portrayal of the seductress had overshadowed some of her better work.

She said at the time: "I am quite surprised that with all my work, and some of it is very, very good, that nobody talks about The Miracle Worker.

"We're talking about Mrs Robinson. I understand the world. I'm just a little dismayed that people aren't beyond it yet."