Susan Saint James, the actress known for “McMillan & Wife” and “Kate & Allie,” has died.
Saint James, 80, died Monday after a battle with pancreatic cancer, People magazine reported.
“She never met a stranger. Every person she met became the most important person in the room at that moment, from a fellow board member to the clerk at the shoe store, who usually walked away knowing her entire life story,” a representative told People.
“Her defining act: weeks after losing her youngest son, Teddy, in the November 28, 2004 plane crash, she delivered his eulogy as a note to each of her other children and her husband, giving them words to heal. Even in the deepest grief of her life, she put everyone else first. Days after the crash she sat with Tim Russert to thank the people who had reached out and to tell them the family was okay.”
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“She brought that same fire and positivity to everything that followed, and never lost it,” the statement continued.
Saint James began her career modeling before switching gears to television. Her breakthrough came in 1968 when she landed the role of research assistant Peggy Maxwell on NBC’s “The Name of the Game.” Her performance earned her a Primetime Emmy Award in 1969 and established her as one of television’s rising stars.
She earned her biggest fame as Sally McMillan, the plucky wife of Rock Hudson’s San Francisco police commissioner Stewart McMillan, in the hit series “McMillan & Wife” from 1971-1976.
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She left the NBC show before its sixth and final season because of a contract dispute, with her character killed off in a plane crash.
Saint James later found renewed success alongside Jane Curtin in the popular CBS sitcom “Kate & Allie,” which ran from 1984 to 1989.
She is also known for roles in “Love at First Bite,” “How to Beat the High Cost of Living,” “M*A*S*H,” “Law & Order: SVU” and “Suits.”
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Offscreen, Saint James was married to longtime NBC executive and former “Saturday Night Live” producer Dick Ebersol, whom she met while hosting the comedy show in 1981. The family suffered a devastating tragedy in 2004 when their 14-year-old son, Teddy, died in a private plane crash in Colorado.
She was previously married to Richard Neubert and makeup artist Tom Lucas.
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Saint James is survived by her husband, her four children – Sunshine Lucas, Harmony Lucas, Charlie Ebersol and Willie Ebersol – her seven grandchildren, and her sister, Mary Mercedes Dewey.
She is also survived by her beloved service dog, Lola.
After “Kate & Allie” ended, Saint James largely stepped away from Hollywood to concentrate on her family and charitable work, particularly her longtime involvement with the Special Olympics.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.