New Delhi, Nov. 10 -- Toukie Smith, the model and actress who played Eva Rawley on the NBC sitcom 227 and shared two children with former partner Robert De Niro, has died at 74.

Smith died on November 4 in a New York hospital after a long battle with multiple sclerosis, according to an announcement from her children, Airyn and Julian, reported by The Hollywood Reporter. The news became public on November 9.

Her career moved from fashion campaigns and magazine photography to television comedy and film. In their tribute, her children placed that work within a wider family contribution to American fashion, including the influence of her brother, designer Willi Smith.

Her children remember a lasting presence

Airyn and Julian described the...