Catherine O’HaraCanadian comedic actor and star of Schitt’s Creek, has died, his manager confirmed to Global News.
According to a statement from her agency, Creative Artists Agency, she died at her home in Los Angeles “following a brief illness,” the Associated Press reported.
She was 71 years old.
O’Hara was born in Toronto in 1954, the second oldest of seven siblings. After graduating from high school, she got a job as a waitress at the Second City Theatre.
After auditioning for the casting call, then-director Joe Flaherty advised, “Continue your day job. Continue being a waitress,” according to the Second City website.
However, O’Hara eventually joined the company in 1974 and appeared on a television show called Second City Televisionwhere she became known for both her celebrity impressions and her fan-favorite original characters.
Actress and comedian Catherine O’Hara of Toronto and Los Angeles is invested as an Officer of the Order of Canada by Governor General Julie Payette during a ceremony at Rideau Hall in Ottawa on Tuesday, November 20, 2018. CANADIAN PRESS IMAGES/Justin Tang.
THE CANADIAN PRESS IMAGES/Justin Tang
O’Hara made her film debut in the 1980s. Double negativewhich also presented the future Schitt Creek co-star, Eugene Levy. O’Hara then took on roles in Martin Scorsese’s 1985 black comedy. After hours and the years 1986 Heartburn.
In 1988, she played a role in Beetle juice as Delia Deetz, the stepmother of Winona Ryder’s Lydia. O’Hara then reprized her role in the 2024 sequel. Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice. She also hosted Saturday Night Live twice in 1991 and 1992, but chose to leave the show to return to Second City Television.
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One of his best-known roles was that of Alone at home And Home Alone 2: Lost in New York as the forgetful mother of Macaulay Culkin’s Kevin, which has become one of the most beloved film franchises.
She would team up with Levy and her son Dan to Schitt Creek in 2015, as the show went from simply streaming in Canada to being picked up by Netflix.
O’Hara remembers his ‘light’
Reactions to O’Hara’s death began to pour in.
Canadian-American comedian Tom Green also paid tribute to O’Hara in an X-rated post, calling him “one of the greatest Canadian comedy icons of all time.”
Home Alone star Macaulay Culkin posted a photo of himself and O’Hara from the film on his Instagram with the tribute: “Mom. I thought we had time. I wanted more. I wanted to sit in a chair next to you. I heard you. But I had so much more to say. I love you. I’ll see you later.”
Pedro Pascal also posted a tribute to him on his Instagram counts, saying “Oh, genius to be near you. Eternally grateful. There is less light in my world, this lucky world that had you, will keep you, always. Always. The one and ONLY #CatherineOHara.”
Beetle juice his co-star Justin Theroux also posted on his Instagram account; “Oh Catherine. We will miss you so much.”
When O’Hara received the award Order of Canada In 2017, she was highlighted as a “cultural pioneer” whose “international success inspired many artists and helped pave the way for the next generation of women in comedy.”
Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre also published that he and his wife Anaida “are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Canadian comedy legend Catherine O’Hara.”
Former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also weighed in, calling O’Hara a “beloved Canadian icon.”
Actors Annie Murphy, from left, Catherine O’Hara and Jennifer Robertson attend the 11th Annual New York Television Festival screening of “Schitt’s Creek” at the SVA Theater on Thursday, October 22, 2015 in New York City. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP).
(Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)
Dan Levy, from left, Catherine O’Hara, Annie Murphy and Eugene Levy participate in the Pop TV “Schitt’s Creek” panel during the Television Critics Association Winter 2020 press tour on Monday, January 13, 2020, in Pasadena, California. The CBC series “Schitt’s Creek” and “Anne with an E” were the big winners at the ACTRA Awards in Toronto. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP
More to come.
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