Anita Bryant, 'Paper Roses' Singer Later Known for Being an Anti-Gay Rights Advocate, Dead at 84

Anita Bryant, the singer and former Miss Oklahoma beauty queen who was outspoken about her anti-gay political beliefs, has died at the age of 84.

The news of her passing was announced in an obituary posted on Jan. 9 in The Oklahoman. The paper shared that Bryant had passed away on Dec. 16, 2024, almost a month before the announcement was made public. It shared that she died at her home.

Bryant rose to fame in 1959 when she released her debut album, self-titled, that contained the hit song "Till There Was You". However, her second album shot her into superstardom and contained the songs "Paper Roses" and "Wonderland by Night".

"Paper Roses" became her first top 5 hit on the charts and was followed up by another successful single called "My Little Corner of the World," which was also a top 10 hit, peaking at No. 10. Her other singles did not do as well on the charts and her only other top 20 hit was "Wonderland by Night," peaking at No. 18 in 1961.

Later in her life, Bryant focused more on advocacy and was an advocate against gay rights. According to NBC, her work against the LGBT community helped to overturn a law in Miami that outlawed discrimination against sexual orientation in several areas such as housing and employment.

She would go on to found the organization called Save Our Children, which claimed that the members of the LGBT community were threats to the children of the nation.

Bryant once spoke about her decision to start the organization.

"The war goes on to save our children because the seed of sexual sickness that germinated in Dade County has already been transplanted by misguided liberals in the U.S. Congress," she said, according to USA Today.

While she was outspoken against the gay community, it would ultimately lead to the downfall of her music career and she struggled to regain the same popularity she had once before. It also took a financial toll and she was dropped from various ads. She was the spokeswoman for Florida oranges from 1969 through 1980, famous for the catchphrase, "Breakfast without orange juice is like a day without sunshine." Bryant filed for bankruptcy twice in her life.

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