Susan Saint James, ‘Kate & Allie’ star, dead at 80

See more of our coverage in your search results. Susan Saint James, best known for her roles in TV series “Kate & Allie” and “McMillan & Wife,” has died. She was 80. A rep for the actress confirmed her death to People Tuesday, sharing she passed away on Monday after a battle with pancreatic cancer. In a statement shared with the outlet, her family remember Saint James as someone who was “generous with her time and energy, which she valued more than money, and instinctively drawn to whoever needed lifting up. She taught her children to pause, be kind and look out for other people.” CBS via Getty Images They continued, “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.” “She brought that same fire and positivity to everything that followed, and never lost it. She is survived by her husband, Dick Ebersol, her four children – Sunshine Lucas, Harmony Lucas, Charlie Ebersol and Willie Ebersol – her seven grandchildren; her sister, Mary Mercedes Dewey, as well as her beloved service dog, Lola,” the statement concluded. The late sitcom star, born Susan Jane Miller, changed her last name to Saint James and moved to Hollywood at 20 years old to pursue the acting career she always dreamed of. Soon after, she signed a weekly contract with Universal and began appearing in films such as “Where Angels Go” and “Trouble Follows.” In 1968, she landed a role on the TV series “The Name of the Game.” Saint James received three Emmy nominations for the series, winning once. Three years later, she signed on to “McMillan & Wife.” Rock Hudson played the former role, and she the latter. Saint James received three more Emmy nominations for the part. Saint James stayed with the show for five seasons until her character’s death. “We did a pilot one year and then worked together almost five and a half years, except that they went on a year without me,” she told Yahoo in 2015. “My character died. It was very sad, but [Hudson’s] character didn’t waste any time having any other girlfriends either!” she quipped. Community Guidelines Welcome to the Page Six Community! Our community is about connecting people through open and thoughtful conversations. We want our readers to share their views and exchange ideas in a safe space. In order to do so, we've created a simple set of rules that will improve your experience. Simply put, keep it civil. Your post will/might be rejected if it contains: Spam Insults, profanity, incoherent, obscene or inflammatory language and threats of any kind Attacks on the identity of other commenters or the article's author User accounts will/might be blocked if we notice: Continuous attempts to re-post comments that have been previously moderated/rejected Racist, sexist, or homophobic comments Attempts or tactics that put the site security at risk So, how can you be a power user? Stay on topic and share your passion. Feel free to elaborate to get your point across. 'Like' or 'Dislike' when you are filled with emotions! Protect your community. Use the report tool to alert us when someone breaks the rules. Thanks for reading our community guidelines. Don't forget, freedom of speech is not the freedom of reach!