Samantha Schubert (born 23 April 1969 – 25 April 2016) was a Malaysian actress, model, and beauty pageant titleholder who won Miss Malaysia World 1991.

Personal life

Samantha Schubert was born in

Kuala Lumpur Kuala Lumpur (KL), officially the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur, is the capital city and a Federal Territories of Malaysia, federal territory of Malaysia. It is the largest city in the country, covering an area of with a census population ...

, Malaysia on 23 April 1969, the youngest child of Carl Schubert, and Datuk Dr. Paddy Bowie, a well-known author and political analyst. She is of

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

descent. She has two elder brothers, Peter Schubert who has died due to car accident in 2004, and Richard Schubert who has also died of illness in 2006. Bowie wrote in a column for '' The Star'' that Schubert's "precocious debut" to the stage was during a visit to the Royal Palace at Sri Menanti in

Negeri Sembilan Negeri Sembilan (, Negeri Sembilan Malay: ''Nogoghi Sombilan'', ''Nismilan''), historically spelled as Negri Sembilan, is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state in Malaysia which lies on the Peninsular Malaysia#Other features, wes ...

: "We were in the Great Hall. The band struck up. But before the assembled adults could begin to dance, this three-year-old girl took the floor and stole the show." She honed her talent for dance during her formative years at school in England and she remained in England for several years of her life while studying at

Drama Studio London Drama Studio London (often abbreviated as DSL) is a British drama school in London. It is accredited by the Federation of Drama Schools. The principal is Emma Lucia Hands. The Drama Studio London was started in 1966 by Peter Layton. It focus ...

and married to a British research analyst Oliver Knotts in 2002. She returned to Malaysia as a dancer and signed with

Genting Group The Genting Group is headquartered in Wisma Genting in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The Group comprises the holding company Genting Berhad (), its listed subsidiaries Genting Malaysia Berhad (), Genting Plantations Berhad (), Genting Singapore Plc () ...

. Soon after, she was enlisted to join "The Girls", the dance troupe of entertainer

Sudirman Sudirman (; 24 January 1916 – 29 January 1950) was an Indonesian military officer and revolutionary during the Indonesian National Revolution and the first commander of the Indonesian National Armed Forces. Born in Purbalingga, Dutch East Ind ...

. However, an injury derailed Schubert's dance dreams. She then moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, United States to take up acting, pursuing her study at the Lee Strasburg School of Film & Theatre Los Angeles and The Beverly Hills Playhouse. Schubert was a successful model before starring in films such as ''

Red Scorpion 2 ''Red Scorpion 2'' is a 1994 Canadian–American action film directed by Michael Kennedy, starring Matt McColm, John Savage, Jennifer Rubin and Michael Ironside. The film is a sequel to the 1988 film ''Red Scorpion'', and is the second install ...

'' (1994), ''Scorpion Orchid'' (1995), ''Amok'' (1995), and her last film appearance, '' The Red Kebaya'' (2006). Her career included several print campaigns and over 30 television commercials, including her most recognizable work for

Nescafé Nescafé is a brand of instant coffee sold by the multinational food and drink corporation Nestlé. It comes in many different forms. The name is a portmanteau of the words "Nestlé" and "café". Nestlé first introduced their flagship coffee br ...

classic TV commercial in 1995. At the time of her death, Schubert had returned to Malaysia to perform in a play produced and directed by

Kedah Kedah (), also known by its honorific Darul Aman (Islam), Aman (دار الأمان; Arabic for 'The Safe Abode') and historically as Queda, is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia, located in the northwestern part of ...

-born actress, Susan Lankester.

Death

Schubert was diagnosed with the disease in August 2015 after going in for a check-up over a persistent backache. In February 2016, Schubert was rushed to Prince Court Medical Centre,

with stomach fluid buildup due to an inoperable

tumor A neoplasm () is a type of abnormal and excessive growth of tissue. The process that occurs to form or produce a neoplasm is called neoplasia. The growth of a neoplasm is uncoordinated with that of the normal surrounding tissue, and persists ...

caused by

pancreatic cancer Pancreatic cancer arises when cell (biology), cells in the pancreas, a glandular organ behind the stomach, begin to multiply out of control and form a Neoplasm, mass. These cancerous cells have the malignant, ability to invade other parts of ...

. She remained in

hospice care Hospice care is a type of health care that focuses on the palliation of a terminally ill patient's pain and symptoms and attending to their emotional and spiritual needs at the end of life. Hospice care prioritizes comfort and quality of life b ...

until her death, two days after her 47th birthday. Schubert was survived by husband Oliver Knotts, 47, and children Jodie, 12, Harry, 10 and Thomas, seven. Funeral service was held at St. John's Cathedral. Following the service, her cortege made its way to the DBKL Crematorium in Cheras. In accordance with her final wishes, Schubert's remains was interred along with her father Carl, along with those of her brothers Richard and Peter at the Cheras cemetery.

Filmography

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Schubert, Samantha 1969 births 2016 deaths Malaysian television actresses Malaysian people of English descent Malaysian film actresses Malaysian beauty pageant winners Malaysian Roman Catholics Deaths from pancreatic cancer Deaths from cancer in Malaysia Miss World 1991 delegates Models from Kuala Lumpur Actresses from Kuala Lumpur Beauty pageant contestants from Kuala Lumpur