Anita Bryant, a popular singer who became known for opposition to gay rights, dead at age 84

(AP) – Anita Bryant, a former Miss Oklahoma, Grammy-nominated singer and prominent booster of orange juice and other products who became known over the second half of her life for her outspoken opposition to gay rights, has died. She was 84.

Bryant died Dec. 16 at her home in Edmond, Oklahoma, according to a statement posted by her family to news site The Oklahoman on Thursday. The family did not list a cause of death.

Bryant was a Barnsdall native who began singing at an early age, and was just 12 when she hosted her own local television show. She was named Miss Oklahoma in 1958 and soon began a successful recording career. Her hit singles included “Till There Was You,” “Paper Roses” and “My Little Corner of the World.” A lifelong Christian, she received two Grammy nominations for best sacred performance and one for best spiritual performance, for the album “Anita Bryant … Naturally.”