Jill Clayburgh Dies at 66

NOV 6, 2010 - Oscar-nominated actress Jill Clayburgh died yesterday (Friday) at her home in Lakeville, Connecticut. She was 66.

Clayburgh, who recently concluded two seasons as the rich matriarch of ABC's Dirty Sexy Money, had been battling chronic lymphocystic leukemia for 21 years, her husband, playwright David Rabe, told Associated Press.

She dealt with the disease courageously, quietly and privately, Rabe said, and conducted herself with enormous grace "and made it into an opportunity for her children to grow and be human."

Clayburgh won an Oscar nomination for 1978's Woman, directed by Paul Mazursky. She shared Best Actress honours at Cannes with Isabelle Huppert for her portrayal of a young, comfortable woman who finds her world is shattered when her husband of surprises her by asking for a divorce, in An Unmarried Woman.

Among her many roles, Clayburgh portrayed Carole Lombard opposite James Brolin in 1976's Gable and Lombard. She teamed with Richard Pryor and Gene Wilder in the screwball mystery Silver Streak, and with Burt Reynolds and Kris Kristofferson in the football comedy Semi-Tough. She and Reynolds had a good rapport, and Clayburgh co-starred with him again in 1979's Starting Over, where she was nominated for a second Oscar for Best Actress.

Besides her husband, she is survived by three children, actress Lily Rabe, Michael Rabe and stepson Jason Rabe.