Ritva Vepsä

Q: When did Ritva Vepsä die?

Ritva Vepsä died on July 30, 2016.

Q: How old was Ritva Vepsä when they died?

Ritva Vepsä was 75 years old at the time of death.

Q: What was Ritva Vepsä's cause of death?

The cause of death of Ritva Vepsä was lung cancer.

Died: July 30, 2016
Age: 75 years
Cause: lung cancer

Deaths in 2016 July 2016 Died on July 30 Who Died Today

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About Ritva Vepsä

Ritva Vepsä, 75, Finnish actress (Time of Roses), lung cancer.

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60 Seconds Life Story

Finnish actress Ritva Vepsä captivated audiences on the silver screen for over three decades.

60 Seconds Life Story

Ritva Vepsä

d. 2016

0:00 / 1:03

60 Seconds: Ritva Vepsä's Life Story

1:03Added 2026-10-25Generated

This documentary short explores the life and award-winning career of Finnish actress Ritva Vepsä.

Transcript

Finnish actress Ritva Vepsä captivated audiences on the silver screen for over three decades. Born in Helsinki in 1941, she began her professional journey early, appearing in the 1958 film Nuori mylläri. By 1970, her talent earned national acclaim when she received the Jussi Award for Best Leading Actress. This prestigious honor followed her powerful performances in the films Sixtynine 69 and the science fiction classic Time of Roses. Beyond her professional life, she was married to actor and director Yrjö Tähtelä for nearly twenty years. In her later years, she faced a private battle with health before passing away at her home in 2016. At the age of seventy-five, the celebrated performer left behind a rich legacy in Finnish cinema.

Play the illustrated life story above, or read the full biography on this page.

Visual credits: elonet.fi (Public domain) · live.staticflickr.com (Public domain) · finna.fi (CC BY 4.0) · Own work (CC BY-SA 3.0) · Transferred from en.wikipedia to Commons. (Public domain) · kokoelmat.fng.fi (Public domain) · elonet.fi (Public domain)

An illustrated presentation assembled inside the archive from the approved script and the credited images: narration, scene transitions and captions. Caption timing is estimated from the narration.

Narrated illustration. Images are sourced and credited; they are not presented as authenticated photographs.

Full Biography

Ritva Annikki Vepsä (12 February 1941, Helsinki – 30 July 2016) was a Finnish actress. In 1970 she received a Jussi Award as the Best Leading Actress for her appearances in a Jörn Donner film Sixtynine 69 and a Risto Jarva film Ruusujen aika. Vepsä was married to actor and director Yrjö Tähtelä 1960–79. Vepsä died on 30 July 2016, aged 75, at her home from lung cancer.