Eartha Kitt, versatile multi-media performer and longtime human rights activist, whose seductive 'Santa, Baby' remains the sultriest Christmas song ever recorded, passed away on Christmas Day, aged 81-years. Suffering from colon cancer for some time now, her last performance, a PBS special to be aired in February, was taped just six weeks ago.

Born a cotton plantation in South Carolina to a black - Indian mother and a white father, she once described herself as 'that little urchin cotton picker from the South, Eartha Mae'. A tough childhood in the impoverished segregated South, where she was often harassed for her light skin, led to her being sent to live with an aunt in New York City. But, her life in New York was also marred by abuse and poverty, until she got her start as a member of the Katherine Dunham's dance company in 1940, beginning her career with a Broadway debut, aged 18-years. In the 1950, she starred as Helen of Troy in actor - director Orson Welles' staging of 'Dr. Faustus,' and reportedly had a steamy affair with Welles, who called her 'the most exciting woman in the world,' and together with Lena Horne, she went on to become one of the first African-American sex symbols.

'Santa, Baby' changed her public image forever, slinky, sensuous and cat-like, Kitt was now regarded as a sex kitten, an image upholstered by a string of slinky pop records through the 1950s, with the biggest 'C'est Si Bon' ensuring she didn't fade from the public eye. Versatile as ever, in the 1960s, she conquered another medium by playing the part of the sexy Catwoman in the TV hit 'Batman'.

Though, Kitt spent half a century working enthusiastically to retain her image as a sex kitten, as a serious activist, she pushed everything from voting rights to HIV/AIDS awareness programmes. Her condemnation of the Vietnam War during a 1968 stage performance, drew a barrage of criticism from Present Lyndon Johnson's wife, Lady Bird, sparking a backlash that forced Kitt to pursue her career in Europe , where she was already popular.

Returning to Broadway in 1978, she starred in ' Timbuktu !', she had her audience in thrall with her seductive purring out of a recipe featuring cannabis as its main ingredient. The next year she wrote her autobiography, aptly named 'Confessions of a Sex Kitten'. A few years later, the very versatile Kitt went on to become the biggest star of the dance clubs.

From the cotton fields of the South, her career spanned the heights of Broadway and more. Her sultry performances as a singer, dancer and actress, charming audiences round the world and won her a string of awards including two Emmys, nomination for a third, even a Grammy, he also acquired two Tony nominations.

In recent years, a regular on the cabaret circuit, she spoofed her image of a sex kitten image and reworked version of 'C'est Si Bon'. She had many hit songs, such as, 'C'est Si Bon', 'Let's Do It' and 'Just an Old Fashioned Girl, however, she is best known for her 1953 hit 'Santa, Baby!', recorded by Madonna, among many other artists, and for which she received a gold record just a few weeks before she died.

But, she was at her best in nightclub acts, steaming up the place with her feline seductive act, winning accolades for her cabaret performances. Married to real estate developer Bill McDonald, she is survived by her daughter named Kitt. She was also known for her relationships with Welles, cosmetics mogul Charles Revson and Arthur Leows Jr., owner of a U. S. movie theatre chain.