LOS ANGELES – Actor-director Tim Robbins' mother, musician Mary Robbins, has died. She was 78.

Robbins' father, Gil Robbins, died earlier this month.

Robbins says his mother died Sunday of a heart arrhythmia, just 12 days after her husband of nearly 59 years passed away. She died at the couple's home in Esteban Cantu, Mexico.

Mary Robbins studied music at the University of California, Los Angeles, and performed professionally in the 1950s.

She successfully battled colon cancer through nutrition and alternative medicine, eventually earning a bachelor's degree in holistic nutrition. She volunteered her services at a clinic near the couple's Mexico home.

Robbins says his mother "had a calm and cheerful demeanor, a sharp wit, a gentle spirit and a generous and loving heart."

She is survived by four children and four grandchildren.

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