‘I Am Woman’ singer Helen Reddy dead at 78

Singer Helen Reddy, whose signature song “I Am Woman” served as a feminist anthem during the 1970s, has died at the age of 78.

Reddy had reportedly been fighting dementia. She died Tuesday, according to a social media post by her children.

“It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved mother, Helen Reddy . . . in Los Angeles,” reads the Facebook post written by her children, Traci and Jordan. “She was a wonderful Mother, Grandmother and a truly formidable woman. Our hearts are broken. But we take comfort in the knowledge that her voice will live on forever.”

Born in Melbourne, Australia, in 1941, Reddy achieved nearly immediate pop-chart success in the U.S.

Her first American single, “I Don’t Know How to Love Him,” raced into the Billboard Top 15 in 1971. One year later, she would hit No. 1 with “I Am Woman.”

The song’s opening lyrics: “I am woman, hear me roar / In numbers too big to ignore / And I know too much to go back and pretend” would serve as a catalyst for the burgeoning women’s liberation movement.

Appearing on the soundtrack to the 1972 feminist film “Stand Up and Be Counted,” starring Jacqueline Bisset and Stella Stevens, the song resonated with its predominantly female moviegoers.

In 1973, Reddy scored her second No. 1 with “Delta Dawn” and topped the charts again the following year with “Angie Baby.”

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Also in 1973, she headlined her own variety series “The Helen Reddy Show,” but it only lasted eight episodes, according to IMDb.

“We are so sad to hear that Helen Reddy has passed away,” wrote The Pointer Sisters on its official Twitter page. “Our first television appearance was on her show. Condolences to her family, friends and fans.”

In 1974, she would become a naturalized American citizen.

Throughout the 1970s, Reddy’s music appealed to young and older fans alike. Her singles “Ain’t No Way to Treat a Lady,” “Emotion” and “I Can’t Hear You No More” all topped the Adult Contemporary chart.

Reddy also was a steady fixture on the big and small screens throughout the 1970s. One of her most notable movie roles was in the 1974 disaster thriller “Airport 1975,” in which she played nun Sister Ruth.

In 1977, California Gov. Jerry Brown appointed her to the California Parks and Recreation Commission, noted The New York Times.

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During the 1980s and ’90s, Reddy appeared in numerous stage plays and musicals, including “Shirley Valentine” and “The Mystery of Edwin Drood," and she made her Broadway debut in the 1995 musical “Blood Brothers,” according to the Internet Broadway Database.

Reddy married three times, including drummer Milton Ruth in 1983.