# Susan Saint James dies at 80 **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** celebrity-death\ **Created:** [October 27, 2026, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/susan-saint-james-dies-at-80/1034198 "2026-10-27T17:45:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2026, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/susan-saint-james-dies-at-80/1034198/1 "2026-10-27T17:45:32Z")
> **[Susan Saint James, Emmy-Winning Star of ‘Kate & Allie’ and ‘McMillan & Wife,’...](https://variety.com/2026/tv/news/susan-saint-james-dead-kate-and-allie-mcmillan-and-wife-1236932008/)** > > Susan Saint James, the Emmy-winning actress who starred in "Kate & Allie," died Monday after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. She was 80. This is getting too close for comfort…she’s only two years older than I am. I liked her a lot on [Kate & Allie](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0086742/) with SNL star Jane Curtain. The long, straight 60s-girl hair and the slightly hoarse (cf. Lauren Bacall) voice. She and Rock Hudson were a bit of a mismatch on [McMillan & Wife.](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0066685/?ref_=nm_knf_t_1) But I guess that was part of the appeal. ---
**Author:** ![ricepad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b38774/32.png) [@ricepad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ricepad)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2026, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/susan-saint-james-dies-at-80/1034198/2 "2026-10-27T17:48:19Z")
One of my earliest celebrity crushes. We used to watch _McMillan & Wife_ all the time, and the sight of her getting into bed wearing a Gene Washington jersey that was loosely draped just so perfectly made me…uh…interested. Such a cutie. RIP. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2026, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/susan-saint-james-dies-at-80/1034198/3 "2026-10-27T17:48:56Z")
I always liked her, and had a bit of a crush on her. She was very funny - and played against type for herself - as a ditzy fashion model in _Love at First Bite_, the 1979 comedy version of Dracula, in which we were to accept that a vampire (who could be destroyed by sunlight) would have an amazing tan (because it was George Hamilton). 😃 [![](https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRxE7PqFyzzD66cKDO279iep9mn9TAZgARGk8YvOEgJgAN77XOSzXK3k624&s=10) ](https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRxE7PqFyzzD66cKDO279iep9mn9TAZgARGk8YvOEgJgAN77XOSzXK3k624&s=10) ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2026, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/susan-saint-james-dies-at-80/1034198/4 "2026-10-27T19:31:49Z")
> [@ricepad](#): > > her getting into bed wearing a Gene Washington jersey Her in that jersey is how I always picture her when I hear or read her name. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2026, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/susan-saint-james-dies-at-80/1034198/5 "2026-10-27T19:36:38Z")
Yes, her long dark hair and sexy voice were definitely of interest to teenage me! 🥰 RIP, Susan. ---
**Author:** ![f.coli](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/eada6e/32.png) [@f.coli](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/f.coli)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2026, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/susan-saint-james-dies-at-80/1034198/6 "2026-10-27T19:51:13Z")
She was also in half of the episodes of “The Name of the Game”, a series with Gene Barry, Anthony Franciosa, and Robert Stack alternating as the lead actor from week to week. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2026, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/susan-saint-james-dies-at-80/1034198/7 "2026-10-27T20:22:24Z")
One of my favorite lines from that movie: “With you, never a quickie. Always a longie.” ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2026, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/susan-saint-james-dies-at-80/1034198/8 "2026-10-28T18:46:43Z")
I watched McMillan & Wife occasionally. Susan was always very good in the role. I never saw Kate and Allie.There was probably a schedule conflict with a show that I already watched regularly. RIP ---
**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:** [October 28, 2026, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/susan-saint-james-dies-at-80/1034198/9 "2026-10-28T20:45:46Z")
She is one of \*two celebrities that ever showed up in one of my dreams as a teen, the other being Carly Simon. Nothing really exciting happened in the dream, though. I was driving home, and I she was walking down the road where my family lived. \*Although I did have a dream where I was talking to someone and I mentioned [Carl Laemmle](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Laemmle). I had recently seen the doc on his life on TCM.