Susannah York, Star of Lesbian Classic, Dies

British Academy Award-nominated actress Susannah York, star of the controversial 1968 lesbian triangle drama, The Killing of Sister George, has died of cancer at age 72, reports The Telegraph.

York starred opposite gay icon Montgomery Clift in the 1962 film biography Freud before appearing in two Oscar-winning best pictures, Tom Jones in 1963 and A Man for All Seasons in 1966.

Two years later York took part in the film adaptation of the play The Killing of Sister George with Coral Browne and Beryl Reid. The lesbian sex scene between Browne's and York's characters was deemed so explicit that the film received an X rating at the time in the United States and was banned or censored in several countries.

York went on to receive an Oscar nomination for best supporting actress the following year for They Shoot Horses, Don't They? and later appeared in the 1978 smash Superman as the mother of the title character.

Watch a scene from The Killing of Sister George below.