My thoughts are with the families of these five people. Each lived a long and successful life and left us with memories and gratitude.
Barbara Barrie was an Emmy, Oscar and Tony nominated actress. She appeared in such stage productions as Company,” “The Selling of the President” and “The Prisoner of Second Avenue.” Her films included Breaking Away for which she received a Best Supporting Actress award nomination, Private Benjamin and The Bell Jar. It was television that she did most of her work.
My favorite role was as Liz Miller, the wife of NYPD Capt. Barney Miller on the show of the same name. Although she only appeared sporadically, she lent a voice of normalcy in the chaotic life of Barney. She had the reserved, but very thoughtful manner which she brought to so many roles.
Patrick Stewart played many roles on the stage, big screen and on television. Of all of his roles, Captain Jean-Luc Picard on Star Trek: The Next Generation, which ran from 1987 to 1994, as well as several films that he may be best remembered. From Star Trek to Shakespeare to the Marvel Universe to Dickens, every role was watching a magnificent actor at work. I like him best as Ebenezer Scrooge in the 1999 television film A Christmas Carol.
He died following a “brief and poignant journey” with Alzheimer’s disease and Lewy body dementia.
Dolores Huerta is the only non-entertainment person on this list. A labor activist, she co-founded the United Farm Workers of America, which stuck for better working conditions and pay. She also worked with the Feminist Majority Foundation which promotes women’s rights, especially reproductive rights. She was very involved in Latina women’s rights. Her work put her in dangerous situations many times, subjecting her to arrest and violence.
The beneficiary of many awards and recognitions for her work. She died at age 96 from cancer.
Elke Sommer was a German actress who achieved film success during the 1960s and 1970s, first in European films before appearing in Blake Edwards’ A Shot in the Dark (1964), which led to many Hollywood films. Many of her roles were tame sex comedies that seem rather silly by today’s standards. She didn’t take that film image seriously and played along with it.
She did not quit acting but her roles were fewer and she turned her efforts towards other pursuits like the Amanda Foundation, a nonprofit organization that places homeless pets. Contrary to her image, she spoke six languages and had business interests. She passed away at age 85 from heart failure.
Susan Saint James left her mark on nearly every role she played. Largely retired later in life, she occasionally came back to the small screen where she found the most success.
She played Peggy Maxwell on three seasons of The Name of the Game and won the Best Supporting Actress Emmy she moved on to play Sally McMillan, wife of San Francisco Police Commissioner Stewart McMillan, on McMillan & Wife, a police drama. In 1984, she joined Jane Curtin in “Kate & Allie,” sitcom about two divorced friends who shared a home and raised their children together.
She married TV executive Dick Ebersole with whom they shared four kids. She passed away from pancreatic cancer.
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