Newly released 911 dispatch audio has revealed harrowing details from the morning Diane Keaton died at the age of 79.
The Annie Hall and Father of the Bride star passed away on Saturday, October 11, after emergency responders were called to her Los Angeles home.
According to dispatch audio obtained by TMZ, a Los Angeles Fire Department operator can be heard alerting responders: “Rescue 19, person down,” before reading out Keaton’s address.
The LAFD confirmed they were called at 8:08AM, and an ambulance transported a 79-year-old woman to a local hospital. A source later confirmed that the person was Keaton.
Her spokesperson told PEOPLE in a statement: “There are no further details available at this time, and her family has asked for privacy in this moment of great sadness.”
Fans and Friends Remember a Hollywood Icon
In the hours following the news, tributes poured in from friends, fans, and former co-stars, many of whom praised Keaton’s warmth and remarkable legacy.
Steve Martin, who starred alongside her in the Father of the Bride films, posted a throwback photo and wrote simply: “Loved!” He also quoted one of Keaton’s iconic lines from Annie Hall: “La dee da, la dee da.”
Ed Begley Jr., Keaton’s co-star in Book Club, told US Weekly he was "extremely close to Diane," and "loved her a lot," adding: “It hit me hard when I heard of her passing. She’s with us still [in spirit]. She’s not going anywhere.”
Director and former partner Woody Allen shared a longer tribute via The Free Press: “It’s grammatically incorrect to say ‘most unique,’ but all rules of grammar, and I guess anything else, are suspended when talking about Diane Keaton. Her face and laugh illuminated any space she entered.” He added, “A few days ago, the world was a place that included Diane Keaton. Now it’s a world that does not. Hence, it’s a drearier world.”
A Sudden Decline
A family friend revealed to PEOPLE that the Godfather actress' health had “declined very suddenly” in recent months. Once a familiar sight walking her dog, Reggie, around Brentwood, Keaton had quietly disappeared from public life earlier this year.
“Even longtime friends weren’t fully aware of what was happening,” the friend shared. In her final months, Keaton was reportedly “surrounded only by her closest family,” including her daughter Dexter, 29, and son Duke, 25, both of whom she adopted as a single mother in her 50s.
Earlier this year, Keaton shocked fans by listing her meticulously restored 1920s Sullivan Canyon home for $28.9 million. The house had been a passion project she documented in her book The House That Pinterest Built.
Lifelong Health Struggles Keaton Faced
Although her cause of death has not been publicly confirmed, Keaton had previously been open about her health battles - including a long family history of skin cancer.
“It’s a family history,” she told the Los Angeles Times in 2015. “My Auntie Martha had skin cancer so bad they removed her nose. My father had basal skin cancer, and my brother had it.” The late star herself dealt with basal cell carcinoma in her 20s and underwent multiple surgeries for squamous cell carcinoma later in life.
She admitted she hadn’t taken sun protection seriously in her youth: “Back in my 20s I didn’t pay attention much. I didn’t research and didn’t really care, and that was stupid because it’s dogged me my entire adult life.”
Keaton also spoke candidly about her past battle with bulimia. In a 2014 interview with Dr. Oz, she revealed that her eating disorder began after she was told to lose 10 pounds for a Broadway role and spiraled into a dangerous pattern of bingeing and purging.
“Typical dinner was a bucket of chicken, several orders of fries with blue cheese and ketchup, a couple TV dinners, a quart of soda, pounds of candy, a whole cake, and three banana cream pies,” she said. “Somebody mentioned that I seemed to have some mental issues, so I went to an analyst. I would go five days a week.”
In her final Instagram post, Keaton posed with her dog Reggie, writing: “Proof our pets have great taste too! Happy National Pet Day from HG & @diane_keaton.”
Our thoughts continue to be with her loved ones.