Susan Saint James, Beloved ‘Kate & Allie’ and ‘McMillan & Wife’ Star, diᩚєs at 80 After Pancreatic Cancer Diagnosis

The Emmy-winning actress brought warmth and independence to television for decades. Behind her Hollywood success, she endured a devastating family tᩚraɢedy that revealed the depth of her strength.

LOS ANGELES — Susan Saint James, the acclaimed actress who became a familiar face to television audiences through McMillan & Wife and Kate & Allie, has died at 80.

Saint James died on October 26, 2026, after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, according to a statement from her representative to PEOPLE.

Her family remembered her as a woman who valued kindness and human connection above material success, describing someone who instinctively gravitated toward people who needed encouragement.

“She never met a stranger,” her family said in a statement, recalling how she made people from all walks of life feel important and heard.

For generations of viewers, she was a gifted television performer. To those closest to her, she was a devoted mother, wife and friend whose greatest legacy extended far beyond Hollywood.

The Roles That Made Her a Television Favorite

Born Susan Jane Miller on August 14, 1946, in Los Angeles, Saint James grew up in Rockford, Illinois.

She discovered her passion for acting at a young age and eventually moved to Hollywood to pursue the career she had imagined since childhood.

Her breakthrough came with the television series The Name of the Game, where she played research assistant Peggy Maxwell. The performance earned her an Emmy Award in 1969.

She reached another milestone in 1971 when she joined Rock Hudson in McMillan & Wife, playing Sally McMillan opposite Hudson’s police commissioner.

The series helped establish her as one of television’s recognizable leading actresses, earning her additional Emmy nominations.

In 1984, she began starring alongside Jane Curtin in the CBS sitcom Kate & Allie. The series followed two divorced women who built a life together while raising their children.

Saint James portrayed Kate McArdle, a spirited, independent woman whose friendship with Allie became the emotional center of the show.

The series ran until 1989 and earned Saint James further Emmy recognition. Its portrayal of friendship, motherhood and women navigating life on their own terms helped make it a memorable part of 1980s television.

After the show ended, Saint James largely stepped away from acting to focus on her family.

The Family tᩚraɢedy That Changed Everything

Away from the cameras, Saint James experienced a loss that would profoundly shape her family’s life.

On November 28, 2004, her youngest son, Edward, known as Teddy, died at 14 in a private plane 𝔠r𝘢sh that also killed the pilot and a flight attendant.

Her husband, longtime television executive Dick Ebersol, and their son Charles survived the 𝔠r𝘢sh with serious injuries.

The tᩚraɢedy devastated the family.

Yet in the weeks that followed, Saint James found a way to support the people around her while grieving her own child.

In a statement released after her dєatᩚh, her family recalled how she delivered Teddy’s eulogy in the form of a personal note to her husband and each of her other children.

The words were intended to help them begin to heal.

Her family described that moment as one of the clearest expressions of who she was: someone who, even in the deepest grief of her life, instinctively tried to comfort others.

It was a private act of love that revealed a side of Saint James audiences rarely saw on screen.

A Marriage and a Life Beyond Hollywood

Saint James met Ebersol in 1981 while guest-hosting Saturday Night Live, where he was an executive producer.

Their relationship developed quickly, and they married just weeks after meeting.

Together, they raised three sons: Charles, William and Edward. Saint James also had a daughter, Sunshine, and a son, Harmony, from her previous marriage to makeup artist Tom Lucas.

After Kate & Allie ended, she chose family life over a return to the demands of a full-time television career.

Although she occasionally appeared in later productions, including Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and Suits, she largely remained outside the Hollywood spotlight.

Her influence continued through charitable work and her support for Special Olympics, where she volunteered and served on the organization’s board.

Those who remembered her often emphasized her generosity, her curiosity about other people and her ability to make ordinary encounters feel meaningful.

A Legacy Defined by More Than Fame

Saint James leaves behind a body of work that helped shape American television across several decades.

From the mystery-driven storytelling of McMillan & Wife to the enduring friendship at the heart of Kate & Allie, her performances brought humor, intelligence and emotional warmth to the screen.

But her family’s tribute suggests that the qualities they cherished most were not the ones celebrated at award ceremonies.

They remembered a woman who listened, reached out and made time for others.

She is survived by her husband, Dick Ebersol; her four children, Sunshine Lucas, Harmony Lucas, Charles Ebersol and William Ebersol; and seven grandchildren.

For fans, her passing marks the loss of a familiar face from television’s golden years. For her family, it is the loss of a woman whose compassion helped sustain them through both ordinary days and unimaginable heartbreak.

Susan Saint James spent much of her career bringing memorable characters to life. Away from the screen, her family says, her most enduring role was the one she played every day: making the people around her feel loved.

May her memory bring comfort to those who knew her and to the generations of viewers who welcomed her into their homes.