Broadway legend Carol Channing died Tuesday at age 97 of natural causes.
The Tony Award-winning actress, who originated the role of Dolly Gallagher Levi in 1964's Hello, Dolly! on Broadway, was beloved by the LGBTQ community for being a longtime ally.
"The gay community is responsible for so much of my success, and I love them," Channing told dot429. "It's a mutual love affair, really. They make the better audiences too, because they laugh often and loudly."
Many took to social media to honor this "mutual love affair."
"One of Broadway's greatest lights, Carol Channing, has passed on," stated George Takei. "She rejoins the heavens as a new diamond in the night sky, and as she famously sang, they are a girl's best friend. Goodbye and farewell, forever our Dolly."
See more tributes to Channing below.
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