Sonja Christopher, the first contestant voted off the island On “Survivor” Died at the age of 87.
The show’s official Instagram page confirmed the news with a message from host Jeff Probst.
“Sonya[sic] Was one of the kindest people to ever play Survivor. Every interaction I have had with him over the years has been lovely. She will always welcome you with a smile on her face and joy in her heart. “I’m honored that our paths crossed,” Probst captioned a photo of Christopher.
Fox News Digital contacted “Survivor” and CBS for additional comment. No cause of death has been shared at this time.
Sonja Christopher, the first contestant eliminated from “Survivor” on CBS, has died at the age of 87. (Aci Harper/Getty Images)
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His death was first reported on Friday, April 26, when several alumni of the show paid tribute to him on social media.
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Current Season 46 contestant Liz Wilcox posted a message on X, writing, “Today, Season One legend Sonja Christopher passed away. I had the pleasure of meeting her at Christmas. She had so much courage + love.” ‘Survivor’ and what this show brought to their lives, I hope you’re singing + playing somewhere beautiful.”
Christopher competed on the first season of “Survivor” in 2000 at the age of 63, and was known for singing and playing guitar to boost the morale of the tribe during her brief appearance on the show.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of “Survivor” in 2020, Christopher recalled competing after three years on Survivor Breast Cancer.
Christopher with the eventual winner of the “Survivor” season, Richard Hatch. (CBS via Getty Images)
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“I was recently recovering from breast cancer treatment. And I had been in a relationship for 11 years and my partner had found solace elsewhere during that time with cancer,” she said. told the outlet those days.
She continued, “So I had moved to a senior retirement community, and I was alone, had no relationships, my son was grown and taking care of himself. I was reading the morning newspaper, and it There was something said in an article about CBS looking to throw 16 Americans on a deserted island and see who could survive for 39 days.”
When asked if he felt he was voted off due to ageism after struggling in the first challenge, Christopher admitted, “I had mixed feelings, that’s for sure.”
376782 04: Contestant Sonja Christopher arrives for the “Survivor: The Reunion” party at the CBS studios on August 23, 2000 in Los Angeles, CA. Christopher was one of 16 contestants who spent over a month on an island to participate in the popular television game show “Survivor”. (Photo by Online USA) (Online USA)
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She added, “I was beaten up a lot… To this day, I still have bruises that won’t go away… Someone once asked me if I thought my being voted off early was age-related. It was because of discrimination. And I said, ‘Oh no.’ And you know why that’s because I had no concept of ageism. I was always good at sports and very physically active, I just didn’t realize that to some of these people I was an old woman.”
Regardless, Christopher remained A fan of the show, I am speaking A video shared on X, Then in 2017 he wrote on Twitter that he has not missed a single episode of the show in the last 17 years.
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“I recently turned 80 and I intend to see out the next 17 years Survivor, and then I can happily head to the giant Tribal Council in the sky. I hope they don’t vote for me,” he wrote at the time.
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