Jane Curtin leads tributes to Susan Saint James: 'We lost a decent person today'

Tributes are coming in for Susan Saint James, the Emmy-winning star of McMillan & Wife and Kate & Allie, who died Monday, Oct. 26, at 80 after a pancreatic cancer diagnosis. The warmest words so far have come from her Kate & Allie co-star Jane Curtin and from the Connecticut community where Saint James spent decades away from Hollywood.

Jane Curtin: “Susan was my friend”

Curtin, 79, shared a statement with ABC News and Page Six on Tuesday:

“We lost a decent person today. Susan St. James was a decent person who made Kate and Allie a joy. She juggled a really full life from the Ed Sullivan theater in between working on stage and being the Mom on set. She worked tirelessly for organizations she believed in like the Special Olympics. All the while raising children and going through the horrors of losing a child.”

She ended it simply: “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.”

The “horrors of losing a child” refers to Saint James’ youngest son, Teddy Ebersol, who was killed at 14 in a 2004 plane crash in Colorado.

What made ‘Kate & Allie’ special

Kate & Allie ran on CBS from March 1984 to May 1989, according to ABC News. Saint James played Kate McArdle and Curtin played Allie Lowell, two divorced childhood friends who move in together to raise their kids in New York City. ABC News said the show ran six seasons and won three Primetime Emmys, and Saint James was nominated for lead actress in a comedy in 1984.

The two had worked together before. ABC News noted that the 1980 comedy How to Beat the High Cost of Living was the first time they shared the screen.

Saint James was careful about how the show’s premise was read. “This is not a statement saying, ‘Girls, leave the guys and go live with your best friend,’” she told People in 1984, as quoted by Page Six. “Kate and Allie didn’t plan this. It’s just the best solution they could think of, and their friendship sustains them.”

Special Olympics Connecticut: “She believed deeply in the power of inclusion”

Saint James served on the board of Special Olympics Connecticut, which named an annual leadership award after her, according to WFSB and WTNH.

“She is an extraordinary individual who poured herself into the things she believed in, and we were very blessed to have her love and support for Special Olympics and for the amazing athletes we serve,” CEO Mike Mason said, as reported by WTNH.

In a separate statement reported by WFSB, the group said: “Susan’s legacy extends far beyond fundraising. She believed deeply in the power of inclusion, celebrated the abilities of our athletes, and inspired others to do the same.”

Remembered in Litchfield

After her TV heyday, Saint James moved her family to Litchfield, Connecticut, and lived out of the spotlight, WFSB reported. There, she bought WZBG, a soft rock radio station. Program director Dale Jones, who worked for her for decades, described her as relentlessly upbeat but quietly determined.

“She radiated positivity,” Jones told WFSB. “She was very driven, but she made it look so breezy and easy. That was kind of her super power.”

Jones also recalled that a few years ago she returned to the stage at the Warner Theater in Torrington, playing Anne Sullivan in The Miracle Worker to raise money for the theater.

The Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame, which inducted her in 1994, said in a statement quoted by WFSB: “May her life and legacy remind us of the many ways women shape our culture, enrich our communities, and inspire generations to come.”

A family’s portrait

Her family’s statement, shared with People and quoted by ABC News, described a woman who “taught her children to pause, be kind and look out for other people.” It added, “She never met a stranger,” and said everyone she met, “from a fellow board member to the clerk at the shoe store,” usually “walked away knowing her entire life story.”

She is survived by her husband, former NBC Sports chairman Dick Ebersol, whom she married in 1981, along with their sons Charlie and Willie, and her children Sunshine and Harmony Lucas from her marriage to Tom Lucas.

Her later work

Saint James kept acting into recent years. ABC News listed later credits including Upload, The Haunting of Bly Manor and Holiday Hearts. She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2008.

FAQ

Earlier coverage: Susan Saint James, Emmy-winning star of 'McMillan & Wife' and 'Kate & Allie,' dies at 80 (Oct 27)