<Tr> <Th> Subject (s) </Th> <Td> human sexuality, race relations, African - American culture </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Notable works and roles </Th> <Td> Aunt Esther in Sanford and Son, Sanford Arms and Sanford </Td> </Tr> <P> LaWanda Page (October 19, 1920--September 14, 2002), born Alberta Peal, was an American actress and comedian best known for her role as Aunt Esther in the popular 1970s television sitcom Sanford and Son . She later reprised this role in the television shows Sanford Arms and Sanford . </P> <P> LaWanda Page was born on October 19, 1920 in Cleveland, Ohio, but was raised in St. Louis, Missouri . She began her show business career working small nightclubs billed as "The Bronze Goddess of Fire," an act which included Page eating fire and lighting cigarettes with her fingertips . She performed the cigarette feat on an episode of Sanford and Son titled "The Greatest Show in Watts" in Season 5 of the series, in which Fred Sanford held a circus in his front yard . On Sanford and Son, she played Esther Anderson, better known to audiences as Aunt Esther, the older sister of Elisabeth Sanford, the mother of her nephew Lamont Sanford and the late wife of Lamont's father Fred G. Sanford . </P>

When did esther from sanford and son die