# Patty Duke dead at 69 **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 29, 2016, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/patty-duke-dead-at-69/750539 "2016-03-29T17:18:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2016, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/patty-duke-dead-at-69/750539/1 "2016-03-29T17:18:18Z")
> **[Patty Duke, Oscar Winner and Sitcom Star, Dies at 69](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/patty-duke-oscar-winner-sitcom-star-dies-69-164024164.html)** > > Anne Bancroft and Patty Duke in ‘The Miracle Worker’ I think I used to watch reruns of her show when I was little. ETA: According to another report, she died of sepsis from a ruptured intestine. . ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2016, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/patty-duke-dead-at-69/750539/2 "2016-03-29T17:35:13Z")
[QUOTE=Johnny L.A.] According to another report, she died of sepsis from a ruptured intestine. [/QUOTE] This is why the phrase “died after a brief illness” was invented. Had I been her family spokesperson, I think that’s what I’d have gone with. Always enjoyed her work, even the campy stuff. RiP Kathy and Patty. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2016, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/patty-duke-dead-at-69/750539/3 "2016-03-29T17:38:07Z")
Do we know how her identical cousin is? ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2016, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/patty-duke-dead-at-69/750539/4 "2016-03-29T17:39:14Z")
I liked her show. I watched out on Antenna TV, although recently it’s been on MeTV. She even did a promo for her reruns. I thought she was older than 69, though. She looked like it. My favorite Patty Duke moment was a PSA she and George Takei did for Social Security. They were on a set that looked like the bridge of the Starship Enterprise and wearing Star Trek style uniforms. Patty said that signing up for benefits was so simple that even Kirk could do it and Takei responded with his trademark “OH, MYYYY!” ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2016, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/patty-duke-dead-at-69/750539/5 "2016-03-29T17:40:27Z")
> [@Superdude](#): > > Do we know how her identical cousin is? Family spokesperson said they were unable to locate her- she was believed to be in either Zanzibar or Barclay Square. > [@cochrane](#): > > I liked her show. I watched out on Antenna TV, although recently it’s been on MeTV. She even did a promo for her reruns. I thought she was older than 69, though. She looked like it. Rough life due to manic episodes before she was medicated. She conceived Sean during a manic episode so fierce she didn’t know who his father was until he was DNA tested; she thought it was either Desi Arnaz, Jr., or John Astin and it was a man she married solely because she thought she was pregnant by either Arnaz or Astin and who she didn’t even remember sleeping with. She described a manic phase where she heard the president telling her to come to DC immediately over the radio and another in which she was ordered to build an ark in Bakersfield, California, and she gave her power of attorney to a guy she met on a plane (didn’t end well). She got help for the bipolar illness, but was also a heavy smoker for more than 50 years. [QUOTE=cochrane] My favorite Patty Duke moment was a PSA she and George Takei did for Social Security. They were on a set that looked like the bridge of the Starship Enterprise and wearing Star Trek style uniforms. Patty said that signing up for benefits was so simple that even Kirk could do it and Takei responded with his trademark “OH, MYYYY!” [/QUOTE] She also did a SS ad as Patty and Kathi at 65. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2016, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/patty-duke-dead-at-69/750539/6 "2016-03-29T17:44:25Z")
Props to Superdude and Sampiro for beating me to the punchlines. The show was on when I was quite small, the only thing I really remember was the theme song and the Zanzibar to Barclay Square line. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2016, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/patty-duke-dead-at-69/750539/7 "2016-03-29T17:44:42Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > My favorite Patty Duke moment was a PSA she and George Takei did for Social Security. They were on a set that looked like the bridge of the Starship Enterprise and wearing Star Trek style uniforms. Patty said that signing up for benefits was so simple that even Kirk could do it and Takei responded with his trademark “OH, MYYYY!” [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJPqrVVtjNE) ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2016, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/patty-duke-dead-at-69/750539/8 "2016-03-29T17:57:39Z")
For some reason, I was picturing Fannie Flagg when I clicked in. Was Patty Duke ever on Match Game? ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2016, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/patty-duke-dead-at-69/750539/9 "2016-03-29T18:02:58Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > I liked her show. I watched out on Antenna TV, although recently it’s been on MeTV. She even did a promo for her reruns. I thought she was older than 69, though. She looked like it. Life did not treat her kindly. She was brilliant as the young Helen Keller in _The Miracle Worker_, though. Every time I see that movie, she blows me away. Even if she never did anything else, she’d deserve to be remembered for that. She was a lot more talented than she got credit for. I remember watching _The Patty Duke Show_ when I was a little older than the target audience, because I had a regular babysitting gig, and the kid took a nap at one, and I sat down to lunch, and that show happened to be the only think one that wasn’t a soap opera, or a “how to paint” show on PBS, or y’know ESPN. Anyway, I thought she was fascinating, because she actually came across as two different people. It’s what made the show interesting for me. I remember reading somewhere that she was a heavy smoker. I don’t remember where. I wonder what the connection is, because very heavy smokers frequently seem to die of intestinal ailments. I also read some place that the incidence of appendectomies in the US has gone down as smoking has gone down, and researchers think there is some kind of relationship, not just a coincidence. But nevermind. Patty Duke will be missed. ---
**Author:** ![TheInimitableMaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b19c9b/32.png) [@TheInimitableMaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheInimitableMaven)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2016, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/patty-duke-dead-at-69/750539/10 "2016-03-29T18:10:24Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > For some reason, I was picturing Fannie Flagg when I clicked in. Was Patty Duke ever on Match Game? **[Yes, she was…and quite a few times.](http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=patty+duke+match+game)** While on the subject of Ms. Duke and game show appearances, **[here is her one and only (as far as I know, so don’t hold me to it) Mystery Guest appearance on _What’s My Line_](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXBU84SWx-M)**. Count me amongst those who have fond memories of watching the ‘two of a kind’ cousins as a wee one, and also being shown Patty Duke’s brilliant performance as Annie ‘The Miracle Worker’ Sullivan in the 1962 film in high school. May thee RIP. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2016, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/patty-duke-dead-at-69/750539/11 "2016-03-29T18:30:49Z")
> [@TheInimitableMaven](#): > > Patty Duke’s brilliant performance as Annie ‘The Miracle Worker’ Sullivan in the 1962 film in high school. In 1962, she played Helen Keller. She did play Annie Sullivan in a TV-movie version severely marred by the presence of Melissa Gilbert as Helen, and Duke was not as good as Anne Bancroft in the 1962 film, but her turn as Sullivan is the best thing about a pretty mediocre film worth missing. Just stick with the brilliant 1962 version. ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2016, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/patty-duke-dead-at-69/750539/12 "2016-03-29T18:31:28Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > For some reason, I was picturing Fannie Flagg when I clicked in. Was Patty Duke ever on Match Game? She was also on ‘Hollywood Squares’ a time or two. ---
**Author:** ![TheInimitableMaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b19c9b/32.png) [@TheInimitableMaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheInimitableMaven)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2016, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/patty-duke-dead-at-69/750539/13 "2016-03-29T18:39:04Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > In 1962, she played Helen Keller. She did play Annie Sullivan in a TV-movie version severely marred by the presence of Melissa Gilbert as Helen, and Duke was not as good as Anne Bancroft in the 1962 film, but her turn as Sullivan is the best thing about a pretty mediocre film worth missing. Just stick with the brilliant 1962 version. Oops and you’re right… :smack: What I get for playing Speedy Gonzales with my multi-tasking AND combined with the fact that I really had not seen the '62 flick since said high school showing (at least sixteen years ago). My bad and thanks. As I’ve said elsewhere, there are celebrity deaths, and then there are celeb deaths that literally come out of nowhere and hit you, OOMPH(!), in the chest. Both Ms. Duke and Garry Shandling’s passings definitely fall in the latter. As a matter of fact, already way too many of such things this year. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2016, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/patty-duke-dead-at-69/750539/14 "2016-03-29T18:56:40Z")
[Picture of Patty Duke and the real Helen Keller](https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/fb/b4/fd/fbb4fd14ec04ca8f23c18d986bbb171f.jpg) She talked about that meeting on a talk show. She said Helen was fussed at by one of her caregivers while Patty/Anna was there for having a cup of coffee against doctor’s orders. Helen responded with words to the effect of “I’m old, I’m blind, I’m deaf… what the hell else is going to happen?” She said the secret to the way she said “Wah-wah” was… pretending she was straining for a 10 pound bowel movement May have been a bit TMI, but it worked! That scene ca. :45 here: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/QlKuJBiw1ac/maxresdefault.jpg "The Miracle Worker (9/10) Movie CLIP - She Knows! (1962) HD") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QlKuJBiw1ac) ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2016, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/patty-duke-dead-at-69/750539/15 "2016-03-29T19:39:08Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > She said the secret to the way she said “Wah-wah” was… In her book, she said she got that as a stage direction from Arthur Penn, and was incredibly embarrassed to hear a grown man use the word “constipation” to her. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2016, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/patty-duke-dead-at-69/750539/16 "2016-03-29T21:39:18Z")
I remember a critic describing her career as “an outstanding dramatic actress stuck in a series of awful situation comedies.” ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2016, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/patty-duke-dead-at-69/750539/17 "2016-03-29T22:03:55Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > I remember a critic describing her career as “an outstanding dramatic actress stuck in a series of awful situation comedies.” She very rarely got quality work in recent decades. She used to make TV movies with Melissa Gilbert that were of mixed quality, but she hadn’t done one of those in many years. I think the high points of her later years were on stage- she played Aunt Eller in the umpteenth revival of _Oklahoma_ on Broadway and Madame Morrible in a San Francisco production of _Wicked_ and I think did some smaller shows as well, but she rarely got more than an episodic guest shot on TV (she was on _Glee_ in its final season as Meredith Baxter’s lover). I always felt she should have had least had a recurring role as a judge on one of the L&O shows or something like. You think of a celebrity as being rich, but in Sean Astin’s book he specifically states that neither of his parents are wealthy, and in an interview I saw with her probably a couple of years ago when she was asked about the Social Security ads she actually said that her Social Security and SAG pensions were the majority of her income most months. I’m sure she wasn’t indigent as most would understand the term, but seems like she was probably closer to middle class than Kardashian. Of course she also spent a lot of her early earnings in manic episodes back when people just considered her impulsive and immature. By her own admission she would charter Lear jets when she was down- that’s some SERIOUS money- so by the time she married John Astin she’d already gone through what she had left after her managers/foster parents screwed her over. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2016, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/patty-duke-dead-at-69/750539/18 "2016-03-29T22:52:09Z")
> [@TheInimitableMaven](#): > > While on the subject of Ms. Duke and game show appearances, **[here is her one and only (as far as I know, so don’t hold me to it) Mystery Guest appearance on _What’s My Line_](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXBU84SWx-M)**. Thanks for that link. A cable network has been rerunning old game shows, including _What’s My Line?_ (and _Match Game_, actually), but from the look of things they’ve all been from the early-'60s. I wasn’t aware of that 1970s iteration of the show. Looks like she was mystery guest more than once. I did a search to see who the panelists were and was led to [this page](http://markgoodson.wikia.com/wiki/What's_My_Line%3F_(1968)/Episode_Guide) at a Mark Goodson wiki. It lists her twice as mystery guest, and twice as a panelist. Arlene Francis sure had a steady gig. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2016, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/patty-duke-dead-at-69/750539/19 "2016-03-29T22:56:18Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > ETA: According to another report, she died of sepsis from a ruptured intestine. I hope a hot dog didn’t make her lose control. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2016, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/patty-duke-dead-at-69/750539/20 "2016-03-29T23:25:47Z")
> [@hogarth](#): > > I hope a hot dog didn’t make her lose control. You owe me a laptop, and possibly an intestine. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/patty-duke-dead-at-69/750539.md?page=2)