Lewy body dementia (LBD) is the second-most common form of dementia after Alzheimer’s disease. However, unlike most well-known forms of dementia, LBD isn’t characterized by memory loss. People with LBD may have visual hallucinations, problems with movement that mimic the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, depression and cognitive issues, according to the Mayo Clinic.
It’s known to be a devastating disease: As Faith Hill told PEOPLE when her father died from LDB, “It was difficult to watch a man you know be someone that you don’t recognize.”
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Ted Turner
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The CNN founder who pioneered the 24-hour news cycle first shared his Lewy body dementia diagnosis in 2018, comparing it to a “mild case” of Alzheimer’s disease. The billionaire entrepreneur was famously married to Jane Fonda and remained close friends with the actress, who called him “my favorite ex-husband.” Turner died on May 6, 2026, at age 87.
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Robin Williams
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The comedic icon is one of the most well-known cases of Lewy body dementia — his diagnosis was made public after his suicide in 2015. After struggling with an undiagnosed case of the brain disorder, Williams, 63, died on Aug. 11, 2014, at his home in San Francisco. His widow, Susan Williams, told PEOPLE in 2015, “I’ve spent this last year trying to find out what killed Robin. To understand what we were fighting, what we were in the trenches fighting and one of the doctors said, ‘Robin was very aware that he was losing his mind and there was nothing he could do about it.’ ”
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Faith Hill
Faith Hill
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Country superstar Faith Hill shared with PEOPLE the heartbreak of watching her father, Ted Perry, who died in 2019 at age 88, struggle with Lewy body dementia. “It was a long passing,” Hill, whose mother, Edna, had died in 2016, told PEOPLE in 2021. “It’s difficult to lose parents just a couple of years apart and watch them pass right in front of you. My dad had Lewy body dementia and it was difficult to watch a man you know be someone that you don’t recognize.”
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Estelle Getty
Estelle Getty
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In the early days of her disease, the iconic Golden Girls star struggled to recall her lines while filming the hit show — leading some on set to think she’d been out partying, TV writer Stan Zimmerman wrote in his memoir, The Girls: From Golden to Gilmore. The author revealed that only a few people knew Getty was struggling with early-onset symptoms of the disease. The Emmy and Golden Globe winner retired from acting in 2001 due to her health, and died in 2008 at 84 years old.
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Mark Volman
Mark Volman
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First diagnosed with the devastating dementia in 2020, the “Happy Together” singer kept things in perspective. “The challenges of this world affect everybody, and it’s been kind of fun being on the other side of a challenge like this and saying, ‘I feel good.’ My friends are here. I’m still here. And I want people to connect with me,” he told PEOPLE. A founding member of the ’60s band The Turtles, Volman, 78, died in 2025 after a “brief, unexpected illness.”
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Jackie Bezos
Jeff and Jackie Bezos
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The mother of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos died at age 78 after a struggle with Lewy body dementia, the Bezos Family Foundation, which she co-founded alongside her son, announced on Aug. 14, 2025. “She passed away today, surrounded by so many of us who loved her — her kids, grandkids, and my dad,” Bezos wrote in a tribute on social media. “I know she felt our love in those final moments. We were all so lucky to be in her life. I hold her safe in my heart forever.”
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Tom Seaver
Tom Seaver
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The National Baseball Hall of Fame announced that the legendary New York Mets pitcher had died on August 31, 2020, from complications of both Lewy body dementia and COVID-19 at age 75. A 12-time All-Star, Seaver’s number, 41, was retired by the Mets. He also pitched for the Cincinnati Reds, the Chicago White Sox and the Boston Red Sox before retiring in 1986.
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Nathalie Baye
Nathalie Baye
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Family of prolific French actress — who appeared in the Downton Abbeyfilm — confirmed on April 18, 2026 that she had died at her home in Paris, following a struggle with Lewy body dementia. After news of Baye’s death was made public, French President Emmanuel Macron paid tribute to her with a post on X, writing, “We loved Nathalie Baye so much.”
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