Entertainer Eddie Fisher dead at 82

BERKELEY, Calif., Sept. 24 (UPI) -- Entertainer Eddie Fisher, whose marriages to Debbie Reynolds and Elizabeth Taylor captivated Americans, has died at 82, his daughter Carrie Fisher said.

"My Puff Daddy passed away Wednesday night," the actress said

in a Twitter message Friday. "He was an extraordinary talent and a true mensch."

In a statement, his family said: "The world lost a true America icon. Eddie Fisher ... one of the greatest voices of the century passed away in Berkeley, (Calif.,) due to complications and a decline in health from a recent hip surgery," CNN reported.

"He was loved and will be missed by his four children: Carrie, Todd, Joel, and Tricia Leigh, as well as his six grandchildren," the statement said.

Eddie Fisher sold millions of records in the early 1950s, with hits such as "Thinking of You," "Any Time" and "Oh, My Papa." Fisher also co-starred in the films "Bundle of Joy" and "Butterfield 8." But he was even more famous for the headlines his marriages to Reynolds and Taylor generated.

When he and Reynolds wed in 1955, they were hailed as "America's favorite couple," KTLA-TV, Los Angeles, said. But after he offered comfort to Taylor following the 1958 death of her husband, producer Mike Todd, in an airplane crash, Fisher divorced Reynolds and married Taylor in 1959. His career never fully recovered from the scandal, KTLA said.

Fisher's marriage to actress Connie Stevens produced two daughters and another divorce. He was subsequently married two more times, to Terry Richard, whom he divorced, and Betty Lin, who died in 2001.

Among his four children, Carrie Fisher, known as Princess Leia from the original "Star Wars" trilogy, and Joely Fisher are actresses.

Eddie Fisher has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, one for recording and the other for television.