Actress Linda Lavin died unexpectedly Sunday in Los Angeles at age 87 from complications of a lung cancer diagnosis, her spokesperson confirmed.
Lavin was best known for the sitcom "Alice," about a single mom working in a diner.
She was working on a Hulu comedy "Mid Century Modern" at the time of her death.
Showrunners David Kohan, Max Mutchnick and Jimmy Burrows said in a statement about Lavin's death, "Working with Linda was one of the highlights of our careers."
"She was a magnificent actress, singer, musician, and a heat-seeking missile with a joke," they continued. "But more significantly, she was a beautiful soul. Deep, joyful, generous and loving. She made our days better. The entire staff and crew will miss her beyond measure. We are better for having known her."
Lavin had a career on Broadway before, during and after she embodied single motherhood in "Alice."
She had six Tony Award nominations, the first in 1970 for her role as Elaine in "Last of the Red Hot Lovers."
She won the award in 1987 for playing Kate in "Broadway Bound."
She also won an Emmy and two Golden Globes for "Alice."
She appeared in a number of movies, including 1984's "The Muppets Take Manhattan," "See You in the Morning" (1989), "I Want to Go Home" (1989), "Wanderlust" (2012), and "The Intern" (2015).
More recently, she had roles in "How to Be a Latin Lover" (2017), "Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase" (2019), and "Being the Ricardos" (2021).
She appeared in the CBS TV shows "B Positive" and "Elsbeth," as well as "No Good Deed," a new comedy on Netflix that also featured Lisa Kudrow.
Lavin said that she met with feminist Gloria Steinem when she began her role in Alice.
When she learned that on average at the time, women were making 69 cents to every dollar men made, she said it gave her a "commitment" to the cause.
