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Rosemary Clooney’s Weight Gain Reached a Peak of 414 Pounds Before Her Death

Rosemary Clooney’s Weight Gain: Was the Singer’s Body Size the Cause of Her Death?
By Olivia Schröder on December 28, 2022

Rosemary Clooney underwent massive weight gain as a result of her heavy drinking and drug use after witnessing the assassination of her close friend Robert F. Kennedy. The White Christmas star weighed 414 pounds at the time she found out she had lung cancer. The actress later died on June 29, 2002, at the age of 74, as a result of cancer.

Rosemary Clooney (May 23, 1928 – June 29, 2002) was a singer and actress from the United States. She rose to fame in the 1950s with the song Come On-a My House, which was followed by other pop hits like Botch-a-Me, Mambo Italiano, Tenderly, Half as Much, Hey There, and Sway.

Rosemary Clooney, the daughter of Marie Frances and Andrew Joseph Clooney, was born in Maysville, Kentucky. She was the fifth of five children. Her father had Irish and German ancestors, and her mother had English and Irish ancestors. She was raised a devout Catholic. Clooney's mother and brother Nick moved to California when she was 15 years old.

Clooney, who had been a heavy smoker for many years, was diagnosed with lung cancer at the end of 2001 when she weighed 414 pounds. Rosie underwent surgery in January 2002 to remove a portion of her fats after cancer was discovered. Three days later, it was announced that she was in serious condition and had been transferred to the Mayo Clinic's intensive care unit.

Despite surgery and a lengthy period of care, she died at the age of  74 on June 29, 2002, at her Beverly Hills home. So, if you are wondering about how Rosemary Clooney gained weight, here is everything you need to know.

Rosemary Clooney Had Massive Weight Gain as a Result of Her Heavy Drinking and Drug Use

Rosemary Clooney had a massive weight gain throughout her life. The singer who co-wrote Girl Singer with novelist Joan Barthel recounts her life with wit and candor. She discusses an ovarian cyst that was misdiagnosed as a pregnancy when she was a young unmarried woman just starting in a show business. She also discusses her struggles with addiction, weight gain, nervous breakdown, and the other heartbreaks that seem to be required in celebrity memoirs.

Rosemary Clooney had a lot on her plate by the early 1960s. She had a demanding job, five children, and a husband who was never faithful to her. Clooney began taking prescription drugs and barbiturates to help her cope with the intense stress. According to The Washington Post, she, like her father before her, became addicted to alcohol. It didn't take long for her to become a full-fledged addict, which severely harmed her career as well as her health and physique.

Clooney's body transformation became erratic and paranoid as a result of her alcoholism and drug addiction. She quickly developed a professional reputation for being untrustworthy and struggled to do things with her overweight body. Her singing career eventually suffered as the condition of her voice deteriorated.

Unfortunately, Rosemary Clooney suffered a massive nervous breakdown as a result of stress, alcohol, and drugs which caused weight gain. Her final trigger was the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy. During the 1960s, Clooney began campaigning for the Democratic Party and was a strong supporter of Robert F. Kennedy's presidential bid. She was only a few feet away from where Kennedy was shot when he was assassinated. Witnessing it, she claimed, precipitated a descent into emotional hell, complete with mental breakdown and drug addiction. She also had undergone a significant amount of weight gain at the time.

This resulted in a mental breakdown and confinement in a psychiatric ward. Clooney was officially diagnosed with addiction and bipolar disorder in the psychiatric ward.  At this point, Clooney recognized her need for assistance and consented to receive treatment, which did assist her in achieving greater mental and emotional stability.

Rosemary Clooney received tragic news at the end of 2001. Clooney, a heavy smoker in her youth, was facing a potentially fatal diagnosis: lung cancer. Clooney would need to be in intensive care for the next few months. Clooney had been nominated for Grammys many times before, but she had yet to win one, despite having a Society of Singers Lifetime Achievement Award and her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

The White Christmas star was to receive a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2002, but she was unable to attend the ceremony to accept her award in person because she was recovering from lung cancer surgery. In January 2001, her weight had risen to 414 pounds. Clooney died on June 29, 2002, at the age of 74, in her home, as a result of cancer.

Rosemary Clooney had to endure unspeakable adversity in her life; not everyone could have survived what she went through. However, as she grew older, she seemed to find some peace and comfort in her life. The New York Times reported that by the time Rosemary Clooney was in her 60s, she seemed to have accepted her weight gain body transformation as bad luck, saying,

If you hang around long enough, you get a lot of good stuff.

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