Facebook.com/NatalieColeOfficialThe widow of Nat "King" Cole and mother of Natalie Cole has died at the age of 89, according to The Hollywood Reporter. A representative of the family says Maria Hawkins Cole died Tuesday of cancer in Boca Raton, Florida.
Cole had a long singing career and featured with both Count Basie and Duke Ellington’s bands. She met Nat “King” Cole in 1946, and the pair traveled and performed together in the 1950s. When Nat died of cancer in 1965, she created the Cole Cancer Foundation.
Maria Hawkins Cole is survived by Natalie and twin daughters Timolin and Casey.
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