Susan Saint James cause of death, Digi Mart USA News: The cause of death of Kate & Allie star Susan Saint James has been confirmed more than a week after her death at age 80.
The actress died October 26 from metastatic pancreatic cancer, according to a death certificate obtained by People. The outlet also reports that she died just months after receiving her diagnosis.
Saint James’ representative confirmed her death in a statement to People on October 27. Her family remembered her as someone who was “generous with her time and energy, which she valued more than money, and instinctively drawn to whoever needed lifting up.” The statement added that she “taught her children to pause, be kind and look out for other people.”
The family said she “never met a stranger,” noting that “every person she met became the most important person in the room at that moment.” The statement continued: “She brought that same fire and positivity to everything that followed, and never lost it.”
The statement listed those she leaves behind: 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.
Saint James celebrated her 80th birthday in August, just months before her death. She was seen at a birthday party at her home in Los Angeles in what would become her final photos.
For the occasion, she wore a white “Spiritual Gangster” T-shirt, a floral tennis skirt and sneakers, accessorized with sunglasses and a red headband.
Her family told People she spent the milestone surrounded by her children and grandchildren. The night before the party, she attended a Doobie Brothers concert, where the band, which Saint James toured with in the 1970s and 1980s, dedicated their song “Black Water” to her.
It was her late son Teddy’s favorite song. The celebrations continued the following day with a backyard birthday party at her Los Angeles home, attended by her entire family, including her husband.
According to her family, Saint James told them it was “one of the best two days of her entire life.”
Saint James was best known for her roles in McMillan & Wife, which she starred in alongside Rock Hudson and for which she received three Emmy nominations, and Kate & Allie, in which she starred alongside Jane Curtin and earned two additional nominations before the series ended in 1989.
Following Saint James’ death, Curtin, 79, paid tribute to her late friend and co-star, telling Page Six in a statement, “We lost a decent person today.” Curtin said Saint James “juggled a really full life from the Ed Sullivan Theater in between working on stage and being the mom on set,” and worked tirelessly for organizations she believed in, such as the Special Olympics, while raising children and going through the loss of a child.
Saint James’ youngest child, Teddy, died in a private jet crash at age 14 in 2004. Curtin concluded: “Susan was my friend, and working with her brought such laughter, community and family to the stage at the Ed Sullivan Theater.
I’ll miss her.”
