Iconic TV Psychic Miss Cleo Dead at 53
Known largely for her 1990s commercials, she died of cancer, her rep said.
— -- Iconic TV psychic Miss Cleo died on Tuesday, ABC News confirmed.
The larger-than-life figure, whose real name was Youree Dell Cleomill Harris, had been battling cancer and passed away surrounded by friends and family, her rep said in a statement.
She was 53 years old.
"She has touched so many lives, both within her family and in the community," her rep's statement read. "She will be dearly missed by us all."
Harris became a widely recognized TV personality in the 1990s after appearing as the spokeswoman for the Psychic Readers Network. In her famous advertisements, she exclaimed "call me now!" in a thick Jamaican accent at the end of each infomercial.
In 2002, however, the companies behind her were sued for deceptive advertising, billing, and collection practices, and the commercials soon came to a stop. Harris, too, came under fire, after it was discovered that she was actually from Los Angeles.
As a result of the lawsuits, Access Resource Services and Psychic Readers Network of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, agreed to stop selling psychic readings over the phone and pay a $5 million fine to the government, according to the New York Times.
However, Harris, a mother of two daughters who came out as a lesbian to the Advocate in 2006, continued meeting with clients in person. She told the publication that her clients were her "village."
“I’m more a shaman, an elder in a community who has visions and gives direction to people in their village," she said. "I take care of this community. If you sit down at my table, you have to take away a lesson and not just learn what is going to happen tomorrow. I also perform weddings — both gay and straight marriages — and house cleansings and blessings."