BREAKING: Lifestyle guru B. Smith dies aged 70 after seven-year battle with Alzheimer’s

Famed model, restaurateur and lifestyle guru Barbara ‘B.’ Smith has died aged 70 after a seven-year battle with Alzheimer’s disease.  

Smith died ‘peacefully’ in hospice care at her home in Long Island, New York, on Saturday night, her husband of 28 years Dan Gasby announced in a Facebook post. 

‘It is with great sadness that my daughter Dana and I announce the passing of my wife, Barbara Elaine Smith,’ Gasby wrote. 

‘Thank you to all the friends and fans who supported B. and our family during her journey. Thank you to everyone for respecting our privacy during this agonizing time.

‘Heaven is shining even brighter now that it is graced with B.’s dazzling and unforgettable smile.’

Famed model, restaurateur and lifestyle guru Barbara ‘B.’ Smith has died aged 70 after a seven-year battle with Alzheimer’s disease. Her husband, Dan Gasby (above together in October 2016) announced her death in a Facebook post on Saturday night

Smith is seen with her stepdaughter Dana at their home in Long Island on January 9, 2020

Smith is seen with her stepdaughter Dana at their home in Long Island on January 9, 2020 

Smith rose to fame as a model in the 1960s after signing with Wilhelmina modeling agency. 

In 1976 she became the first black woman to grace the cover of Mademoiselle magazine. 

She went on to open three eponymous restaurants in New York City, Long Island and Washington, DC. 

Smith cultivated her lifestyle and media brand after landing her own talk show, ‘B. Smith with Style’, in 1997, which aired on NBC stations across the country. 

She launched her own home collection at Bed Bath and Beyond in 2001 and authored three home entertaining books.

Smith was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s in 2013 at the age of 63. 

She documented her struggle with the degenerative disease in the 2016 book ‘Before I Forget’, which she penned with her husband and journalist Michael Shnayerson. 

Smith rose to fame as a model in the 1960s after signing with Wilhelmina modeling agency. She is pictured at a charity event in Sag Harbor, New York, in July 1999

Smith rose to fame as a model in the 1960s after signing with Wilhelmina modeling agency. She is pictured at a charity event in Sag Harbor, New York, in July 1999

Smith owned three eponymous restaurants in New York City, Long Island and Washington, DC, and built her own lifestyle brand after landing her own talk show, 'B. Smith with Style', in 1997

Smith owned three eponymous restaurants in New York City, Long Island and Washington, DC, and built her own lifestyle brand after landing her own talk show, ‘B. Smith with Style’, in 1997

Gasby and Smith tied the knot in 1992. They are pictured together at a benefit in 2007

Gasby and Smith tied the knot in 1992. They are pictured together at a benefit in 2007

Smith’s marriage to Gasby made headlines in late 2018 after he announced that he had a girlfriend – Manhattan chef Alex Lerner – who was helping to care for his ailing wife.   

In the face of fierce backlash over the new relationship, Gasby revealed that his wife had told him to move on with his life before her Alzheimer’s worsened.  

Gasby faced backlash last year after he revealed that he had a girlfriend - Manhattan chef Alex Lerner (pictured together) - who was helping to care for his ailing wife

Gasby faced backlash last year after he revealed that he had a girlfriend – Manhattan chef Alex Lerner (pictured together) – who was helping to care for his ailing wife

‘They say I am disrespecting her. B. told me to live, to go on, as I’ve told her,’ the 64-year-old told People Magazine in February 2019.

He said that he and Smith discussed their futures and what to do if either of them became incapacitated while assembling their wills. 

‘B. asked me to go on with my life. Anyone who says B. didn’t do that doesn’t know B. We wanted each other to be happy,’ Gasby said. 

‘What we would like people to know is that when somebody has Alzheimer’s, how devastating it is, how 24/7 it is, how draining it is,’ he added.  

Gasby refused to place his wife in a home and had been caring for her along with his 32-year-old daughter Dana, whom Smith had adopted after they tied the knot in 1992.  

‘You can be a caregiver and be loving to the patient and your loved one but you can still find some joy. It doesn’t need to be one or the other,’ he says. 

At the time Gasby said he had even introduced his new girlfriend to Smith, and said Lerner helped out with her care.  

Speaking to Third Hour of Today, Gasby said he was speaking publicly about Lerner because that’s what Smith wanted. The pair had been together for over a year at the time of that interview.  

‘Because that’s what Barbara asked me to do, to talk about it. It spun out of control to “I’m having an affair. This woman, because of who she is, is taking B’s money. We’re abusing B. B wouldn’t want this.” These people have never even talked to B,’ Gasby said.   

This is a developing story. 

Gasby is seen with his wife Smith (right) and girlfriend Lerner (left) in September 2018

Gasby is seen with his wife Smith (right) and girlfriend Lerner (left) in September 2018

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