Jennifer Grey Says Mum Jo Wilder Died ‘By Her Own Choosing’ Following Cancer Diagnosis

Jennifer Grey is mourning the loss of her mother, Jo Wilder, who she says died “by her own choosing” at age 94 shortly after being diagnosed with lung cancer. 

The Dirty Dancing star made the announcement on Instagram Thursday on Instagram, describing her late mum as “brave” and “deep”. 

“My mother, Jo Wilder, passed away on 4 July at 94 – by her own choosing, on her own terms, exactly as she lived,” Jennifer wrote alongside a carousel of throwback photos. 

“A week earlier, she learned she had lung cancer. True to who she was, she chose grace over fear, understanding that leaving this world with dignity is an honor, not a tragedy.”

She added that while her mother had been “a promising young actress on the New York stage in her youth”, she had ultimately chosen to prioritise motherhood over her career. 

“If she’d chosen ambition over my brother and me, we never would have had the mother we had,” the actor wrote, alluding to her brother, James Katz, who works as a chef. 

She concluded her note with: “I love you, Mom. Thank you for showing me how to do it all, even this, with grace.” 

As of Thursday afternoon, Jennifer’s post had drawn an outpouring of condolences, including several from her famous friends in Hollywood.

“How lucky you are to be able to write such a tribute to your obviously awesome AF mom,” musician Richard Marx wrote. “I’m sure she was so proud of the woman you are. Sending love.”

Added actor Julianne Moore: “So sorry for your loss.” 

Jo Wilder was born in Brooklyn, New York, and made her Broadway debut in the musical She Loves Me in 1963.

Throughout the late 1950s and early ’60s, she appeared on a number of television series, including How To Marry A Millionaire and The Detectives.

In 1958, Jo married fellow actor Joel Grey. Jennifer Grey later recalled her mother realising “it wasn’t practical for there to be more than one actor in the family, and that, according to her, my dad ‘needed it more’”.

“I could sense an intensity fueling her singing of show tunes and opera around the house, the volume and vibrato reverberating against the tiled bathroom walls as she bathed me, more suitable for a stage than a bath-time melody,” Jennifer wrote in her 2022 memoir, Out Of The Corner, as reported by USA Today.

“Like she’d been cast out prematurely, unfairly rejected from her intended trajectory.”

Joel Grey went on to enjoy major success on the stage and screen, and in 1973, won an Oscar for his portrayal of the Emcee in the film adaptation of the musical Cabaret.

He and his ex-wife divorced in 1982, and in 2015, he came out as gay at age 82.

Despite their split, the pair appeared to be on good terms and continued to make public appearances together.

Jennifer, who is currently at work on a much-anticipated sequel to Dirty Dancing, has celebrated her mum on a number of occasions over the years. 

“I’m so grateful that I still have my mother,” she said during an appearance on Live With Kelly And Mark in 2022. 

“She’s such a beautiful, beautiful woman, and she’s been just such an incredible champion of mine.”