Actress, Lynne Thigpen, had roles in many films and TV shows, such as Tootsie, The District, and Anger Management, but most of us remember here on ILoveOldSchoolMusic.com remember her as “Leonna Barrett” in Lean On Me. She played the disgruntled parent of an expelled student in the film and when “Mr. Clark” (Morgan Freeman) kicked her out of the parent meeting it was CLASSIC!

We wanted shed some light on a few facts about this phenomenal actress that many of us didn’t know. Ms. Thigpen passed away on March 12, 2003 at the age of 54. Apparently her death was a shock to everyone, including her close family and friends because she had no known history of illnesses and otherwise appeared to be a healthy woman.

Sadly, Lynne was found dead at her home in Marina del Rey, Calif., by her friend. The official coroner’s report stated that she died of a cerebral hemorrhage. In the few days leading up to her last breathe, Lynne had been suffering from a severe headache. There was no foul play, nor any other external factors that were found to have contributed to her passing.

Ms. Thigpen’s death is just one of those tragic and unpredictable reminders that life is extremely short and we need to do our best to pay close attention to any warning signs our bodies give us. This is a grown folks community, so most of us are in the age bracket where health issues become more of a threat. Let’s face it, we’re not 20 year olds anymore, we’re wiser, smarter, but also more health risk prone than our younger selves. So please let’s not take it for granted family.

One old school fun fact about Lynne Thigpen is that she was a school teacher before the world came to know her as the incredible actress she was. I guess you could say that even in death Ms. Thigpen is still teaching lessons- lessons about life, success and health. Thank you Lynne and may you continue to rest peacefully.

-ILoveOldSchoolMusic, Old School news with a new point of view.