Tony Award-winning actress Linda Lavin, known for her roles on Broadway and on television, particularly as the lead character in the popular sitcom “Alice,” passed away on Sunday, December 29, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. She was 87 years old.
A representative for Lavin confirmed her unexpected death was due to complications arising from a recently diagnosed lung cancer. This news comes shortly after her attendance at the Los Angeles premiere of her Netflix series “No Good Deed” on December 4, in which she co-starred with Lisa Kudrow and Ray Romano.
Lavin was born in 1937 in Portland, Maine, to Russian immigrant parents. Her mother, a singer, nurtured her interest in theater. In an interview with PEOPLE in 1992, Lavin reminisced about a childhood photo, stating, “That’s still me. I am still her.”
Following her theater studies at the College of William and Mary in Virginia, Lavin moved to New York City, where she spent the following ten years building her career. Her big break came in 1966 with the Broadway production “It’s a Bird…It’s a Plane…It’s Superman,” where she performed the musical’s signature number, “You’ve Got Possibilities.”
Before her first Tony nomination in 1969 for “Last of the Red Hot Lovers,” Lavin made guest appearances on various TV shows such as “The Nurses,” “Rhoda,” “Harry O,” and “Kaz.” After moving to Los Angeles, California in 1973 with her then-husband, actor Ron Leibman, she played the recurring role of Detective Janice Wentworth on “Barney Miller” before securing her most recognized role as Alice Hyatt.
“Alice,” the TV show adapted from Ellen Burstyn’s Oscar-winning role in the 1974 film “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore,” aired from 1976 to 1985. In the role of a single working mother, Lavin won two Golden Globe Awards and received an Emmy nomination.
In a 1978 press statement, Lavin expressed her wish for her character, Alice, to be portrayed as a woman who, despite experiencing loneliness, maintained courage and humor. She aimed to blend humor with a deeper connection to the audience by communicating that they were not alone in their struggles.
Returning to Broadway in the late 1980s, Lavin won a Tony Award in 1987 for “Broadway Bound.” She went on to earn four additional Tony nominations for roles in plays, including “The Diary of Anne Frank” (1998) and “The Lyons” (2012). She also had numerous film credits, including “Damn Yankees!” (1967), “The Muppets Take Manhattan” (1984), “The Intern” (2015), and “Being the Ricardos” (2021).
At the time of her death, she had completed seven episodes of the upcoming Hulu series “Mid-Century Modern.” The series’ producers Max Mutchnick, David Kohan, and director James Burrows praised her as “a magnificent actress, singer, musician, and a heat-seeking missile” with a joke, but more importantly, “a beautiful soul.”
During the “No Good Deed” premiere, Lavin reflected on her career trajectory and expressed satisfaction with her life, including a fulfilling marriage and ongoing work.
Lavin’s personal life included three marriages. She was first married to actor Ron Leibman from 1969 to 1981, then to actor-director Clifford “Kip” Niven from 1982 to 1992. After a legal battle marked by accusations of mental and emotional abuse, infidelity, and financial mismanagement, she divorced Niven in 1991. Her third marriage in 2005 to artist and drummer Steve Bakunas was more successful.
In a 2020 interview, Lavin revealed that finding love again with Bakunas was unexpected, having previously ruled out the possibility of another relationship or marriage.