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How did Eve Babitz die? Literary world mourns writer who 'said all wrong things right'

CNBC editor Allie Pape wrote, 'Eve Babitz, patron saint of cynical hedonists with big naturals. May her memory be a blessing'

Literary celebrity and Hollywood's "It" girl from the 1960s, Eve Babitz, has died aged 78. Known as the woman who wrote about Los Angeles like no one else ever has or could, Babitz died at a Los Angeles hospital due to complications arising from Huntington's disease. Her cousin, Laurie Pepper, posted the tragic news on her Facebook page. The post read, "Mirandi Babitz, my cousin, Evie's sister, will post soon. Just letting friends know that Eve Babitz died peacefully today at 3:31 PM. Mir took such good patient care of her big sister Eve for so many years now and was with her at the end."

Pepper added, "I asked my daughter what Jews are supposed to say. Maggie told me 'Baruch dayan ha'emet.' I asked her what it meant. She said her interpretation is 'Blessed be God's judgment. I don't know anything.' I loved Evie so much for so long. We had a lot of fun." The New York Times described Babitz as "Hollywood royalty" for the connections she had to the music, and arts industry. She was composer Igor Stravinsky's goddaughter. In some circles, she was known as a groupie and she reportedly had love affairs with a string of famous people like Jim Morrison, Harrison Ford, Annie Leibovitz, and Warren Beatty to name a few. Lili Anolik published a book on her in 2019 describing her as a "hybrid of bohemian intellectual and an unquenchable party girl." Earlier this week, feminist author Bell Hooks' death at 69 left her fans devastated. Earlier this week, the author of 'The Vampire Chronicles' Anne Rice also died while 'Cruel Optimism' author Lauren Berlant died in June. James Loewen, historian and author of 'Lies My Teacher Told Me', died at 79 in August.  

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Literary world mourns the 'greatest chronicler of Hollywood demimonde'

NYT's bestselling author, Grammy winner, and music critic, Bob Mehr tweeted, "It appears the greatest chronicler of the Hollywood demimonde, the brilliant Eve Babitz, has passed (per her cousin Laurie Pepper over on FB). R.I.P. to the absolute best." Another tweet read, "RIP Eve Babitz, the L.A. Woman incarnate, the insider-outsider whose books & life reveled in the absurd, flamboyant, and technicolor. A genius in a feather boa, poet laureate of Tana's & Musso, all dissolute Hollywood glamour & gilded insight, who said all the wrong things right." A third tweeted, "Something about Eve Babitz dying on a night that I am not in LA feels like… something. the city has lost one of its patron saints and I’m so fucking sad."

There were a couple of tweets referencing the iconic nude photo she posed for while she played a game of chess with Marcel Duchamp which later showed up on the poster for the Museum of Modern Art. "RIP Eve Babitz, may your LA wit and chess pic live forever #RIPEve" read a tweet. "All any of us girl writers really had to lean on was Eve Babitz. she was the one to do it for us first, and to do so with her cleavage out, martini in hand, gossip in mouth, unabashedly," tweeted another. "Eve Babitz, patron saint of cynical hedonists with big naturals. May her memory be a blessing," wrote CNBC editor Allie Pape.