American actress Betty McGuire, best known for her role as Kate Malone on the series “Growing Pains“, has died at the age of 100. She passed away on October 8 at the Wasserman Campus of the Motion Picture & Television Fund in Woodland Hills, California, and the cause was listed as natural.
Her death was confirmed by Keith Gerchak, her attorney. The news was announced publicly on October 18, ten days after the actress's death.
The role that made her remembered by television viewers
McGuire played Kate Malone – the mother of the character Maggie Seaver, played by Joanna Kearns, and the grandmother of the Seaver children. She appeared in 12 episodes of “Growing Pains“, which ran for seven seasons.
Her television credits include “Columbo“, “Charlie's Angels“, “MacGyver“, “ER“, “Crime Scene: Miami“, “Star Trek: Space Station 9“, “Hill Street Blues“ and “Falcon Crest“. On the big screen, McGuire has starred in the films “Coma“ and "The Smoke Rises."
Decades of Stage and Screen
McGuire's career began on the stage. In the 1950s, she appeared in Broadway productions of "Plain and Fancy," "Happy Hunting," and "Oh, Captain!", working alongside such notables as Ethel Merman, Bea Arthur, and Tony Randall.
She later toured with musicals such as "Gypsy," "Oliver!", and "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying." In Las Vegas, she starred in “Mame“.
In her later years, McGuire remained active in the Motion Picture & Television Fund community. She volunteers at a legal clinic in Los Angeles that supports low-income tenants, and hosts the complex's own in-house TV show “GabFest“.
Sources: au.variety.com, tvline.com, thestatesman.com