Susan Saint James, the Emmy-winning actress beloved for Kate & Allie and McMillan & Wife, has died at 80. Her representative confirmed to PEOPLE that she died Monday, October 26, following a pancreatic cancer diagnosis.
As audiences remember her television work, her family's tribute draws attention to the care she gave people away from the camera.
"She never met a stranger," they said in the statement shared with PEOPLE, remembering her ability to make anyone-from a colleague to a shop employee-feel valued.
Saint James built a career across drama, mystery and comedy. She won an Emmy in 1969 for playing research assistant Peggy Maxwell in The Name of the Game, then earned three nominations as Sally McMillan opposite Rock Hudson in McMillan & Wife. Her performances combined an easy charm with the confidence to hold the screen alongside established stars.
With Kate & Allie, she helped bring a different household into the television mainstream. Beginning in 1984, Saint James and Jane Curtin played divorced friends raising their children under one roof. Its premise made female friendship central to the practical work of rebuilding family life-a subject that still gives the comedy relevance.
After the series ended in 1989, Saint James largely stepped away from acting to concentrate on her family and charitable work. Her support for Special Olympics became an enduring commitment; at her 2008 Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony, Maria Shriver praised the time she had devoted to its athletes over decades.
Her family also recalled her response to devastating personal loss. After her youngest son, Teddy, died in a 2004 plane crash, she used his eulogy to offer comfort to her husband and surviving children. They remembered that generosity as an expression of the person they knew throughout her life.
Those memories give her farewell its particular poignancy. Saint James spent years commanding an audience's attention. The tribute from those closest to her honours how readily she gave her own attention to others.
She is survived by her husband, Dick Ebersol, four children and seven grandchildren.
