Brigitte Bardot, Movie Idol Who Renounced Stardom, Dies at 91

In recent decades, Ms. Bardot continued to appear in public to promote animal rights, but she gained notoriety for her political views, which many saw as racist. This came to particular light in her two-volume memoir, “Initiales B.B.” (1996-97), in which she made negative comments about several groups, including Muslims. In 2004, she was convicted of inciting racial hatred, and fined, for similar comments in “A Cry in the Silence,” a nonfiction best seller in which she referred to Muslims as “cruel and barbaric invaders” and made derogatory comments about gay people.