Death
Stewart had undergone surgery for skin cancer in 1983. In April 1993 he underwent heart surgery and had a pacemaker installed. On January 31, 1997, Stewart tripped over a plant in his bedroom and was rushed to a hospital for stitches to close a bloody gash in his forehead. There it was discovered that he had skin cancer which appeared to be untreatable. He was sent home.
On July 2, 1997, an embolism lodged in his lungs. The clot caused a heart attack that killed him instantly. He was 89 years old. His death came one day after the death of his one-time co-star Robert Mitchum (The Big Sleep). James Stewart is interred in Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery, alongside his wife, Gloria, who had died from lung cancer on February 16, 1994. President Bill Clinton commented on Stewart's death, saying: "America lost a national treasure today. Jimmy Stewart was a great actor, a gentleman and a patriot."
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