'She Never Met a Stranger': Susan Saint James Dies at 80 After Pancreatic Cancer Battle

Susan Saint James, the Emmy-winning actress who became a staple of American television in McMillan & Wife and Kate & Allie, has died at the age of 80 after a battle with pancreatic cancer, her family has announced in the United States.

She died on Monday, 26 October, according to a statement given to People magazine, which described how 'she never met a stranger' and was 'generous with her time and energy' and 'instinctively drawn to whoever needed lifting up'.

She is survived by her husband, Dick Ebersol, their sons Charlie and Willie, her daughters Sunshine and Harmony from her earlier marriage, seven grandchildren, her sister Mary Mercedes Dewey and her service dog, Lola.

From Hollywood Contract to Television Mainstay

Born Susan Jane Miller in Los Angeles in 1946, she changed her surname to Saint James at 20 and signed a weekly contract with Universal. Her television break came with Fame Is the Name of the Game in 1966, which led to the series The Name of the Game.

Playing researcher Peggy Maxwell, she won an Emmy in 1969. Guest roles in It Takes a Thief, Ironside, McCloud and M*A*S*H followed.

Her widest fame came with McMillan & Wife, which began in 1971. She played Sally McMillan, the sharp-witted wife of Rock Hudson's police commissioner. She left after five seasons amid a contract dispute, and her character was killed off in a plane crash.

Film roles followed, including Outlaw Blues, Love at First Bite and How to Beat the High Cost of Living.

While guest-hosting Saturday Night Live in 1981, she met the show's executive producer, Ebersol. They married in 1981 and had three sons, Charlie, Willie and Teddy. She had two children, Sunshine and Harmony, from her previous marriage to make-up artist Tom Lucas.

In 1984 she returned to television in Kate & Allie, playing a divorced mother who shares a home and raises children with her best friend, played by Jane Curtin. The sitcom ran until 1989.

She largely stepped back from acting afterwards, though she made occasional guest appearances, including in The Drew Carey Show, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and Suits. She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2008. She also co-founded a baby gift business, Seedling and Pip, in 1998 with her sister and a friend.

Family Tragedy and Long-Term Charity Work

Her youngest son, Teddy, died aged 14 when a private jet carrying Ebersol and their sons crashed during take-off in Colorado on 28 November 2004. The pilot and a flight attendant were also killed, while Ebersol and Charlie survived with serious injuries.

In their statement, the family described her 'defining act' as delivering Teddy's eulogy weeks later in the form of a note to each of her surviving children and her husband, 'giving them words to heal'. Days after the crash, she sat down with the NBC journalist Tim Russert, a family friend, to thank people who had reached out.

Away from the screen, she was a long-time supporter of the Special Olympics. She supported the Special Olympics for decades and later served on its international board and the board of Special Olympics Connecticut. She later served on the organisation's international board and on the board of Special Olympics Connecticut.

In his 2022 memoir, Ebersol called her 'the greatest partner I've ever had by far'.