Actress Linda Lavin, known for her role in the classic sitcom Alicedied on Sunday at the age of 87.

A spokesperson for the Golden Globe-winning star confirmed that she died unexpectedly in Los Angeles following complications from recently discovered lung cancer.

Lavin worked on the Hulu comedy Mid-Century Modern at the time of her death.

“Working with Linda has been one of the highlights of our careers,” showrunners David Kohan, Max Mutchnick and Jimmy Burrows said in a statement.

“She was a great actress, singer, musician and a hot-tempered missile with a joke. But more importantly, she was a beautiful soul. Deep, joyful, generous and loving. She made our days better. The entire staff and crew.” We will miss them beyond measure because we knew them.

A native of Maine, Lavin moved to New York after majoring in theater at the College of William & Mary. She then appeared in an off-Broadway revival of George and Ira Gershwin Oh, Kay!.

She received six Tony nominations throughout her career, the first of which came in the 1970s for her portrayal of Elaine Last of the Red Hot Lovers. Lavin won the award in 1987 for his role as Kate Broadway bound.

Lavin also made a name for herself on television, landing a recurring role as Detective Janice Wentworth in ABC’s first two seasons Barney Miller. She was later given the lead role Alice in 1976, making her a household name.

The show is based on the 1974 film Alice doesn’t live here anymoreTo him, Lavin was a financially strapped, widowed mother in Phoenix who worked at a restaurant. She received an Emmy nomination and two Golden Globes for her work on the hit series.

Speaking to broadcaster Steve Adubato in 2012, Lavin spoke about how this role pushed her into the women’s movement at the time.

“I knew it was my job to learn about single mothers and working women,” she said. “So I went to Gloria Steinem, who I had met briefly, and she connected me with writers, columnists and news people who were writing about working women.

“I learned that Alice represents 80 percent of all women working in this country who still struggle with the 69 cents on the dollar that men earn for the same quality of work. Suddenly I had a rhetoric, I had an obligation.” “

Throughout her storied career, Lavin also took on major screen roles in a number of films, including “1984.” The Muppets conquer Manhattan, See you tomorrow morning (1989), I want to go home (1989), Wanderlust (2012) and The intern (2015).

In recent years she has appeared in How to Become a Latin Lover (2017), Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase (2019) and Being the Ricardos (2021) alongside Nicole Kidman and Javier Bardem.

On television, Lavin was recently seen mainly on the CBS shows B Positive And Elsbethas well as Not a good deeda new Netflix comedy starring Lisa Kudrow. Lavin attended the Hollywood premiere of the series on December 4th.

Lavin is survived by her husband, drummer and artist Steve Bakunas, whom she married in 2005.