Actress Susan St. James, who appeared as a guest at the second WrestleMania, died on Monday at the age of eighty.
St. James, who was the wife of Dick Ebersol, had been battling pancreatic cancer, with a rep for St. James confirming her passing to PEOPLE.
She was born Susan Jane Miller but changed her name when pursuing a career in Hollywood. She has many film and television credits on her resume, including her role as Sally McMillan in ‘McMillan & Wife,’ where she received a pair of Emmy nominations. In 1984, she took on the role of Kate McArdle and co-starred with Jane Curtin in ‘Kate & Allie, ’ which aired on CBS for six seasons.
In October 1981, she hosted an edition of Saturday Night Live with The Kinks as the musical guest. It was a noteworthy episode because it featured Eddie Murphy’s first sketch as Buckwheat. It was from this episode that she met producer Dick Ebersol, and the pair were married six weeks later.
Ebersol and Vince McMahon became business partners in 1985 off the success of WrestleMania and the WWF’s ventures on MTV. The pair produced the first episode of Saturday Night’s Main Event in May that year, which led to a six-year run on NBC before moving to Fox. It returned to NBC in 2006 and is now in its latest incarnation as a Peacock exclusive.
The relationship opened the door for St. James to be among the long list of celebrities involved with WrestleMania 2 in April 1986. St. James was utilized as a broadcaster alongside Vince McMahon for the New York portion of the event.
McMahon and Ebersol’s working relationship rekindled in 2000 when the XFL was launched, and NBC was seeking an alternative after losing the NFL. NBC became a partner in the league, which famously launched to a gigantic first weekend of viewership but plummeted in the ensuing weeks. The league was dissolved after one season with heavy losses for both sides.
Ebersol and St. James suffered the ultimate tragedy in 2004 with the death of their 14-year-old son, Teddy. Ebersol was on a charter jet with his sons, Teddy and Charlie, which crashed in Colorado. Dick and Charlie survived, but the pilot and Teddy did not.
From The Los Angeles Times in 2004:
Ebersol, 57, had been in Los Angeles over the Thanksgiving weekend and attended the USC-Notre Dame football game Saturday. Charles is a senior at the University of Notre Dame; a third Ebersol son, 18-year-old Willie, is a USC freshman.
Ebersol’s wife, actress Susan Saint James, flew with the family to Colorado on Sunday; they own a home in Telluride, about 40 miles south of the Montrose airport.
After dropping her off, Ebersol and their two sons boarded a jet for South Bend, Ind., to return Charles to Notre Dame before heading home to Litchfield, Conn.
Since the accident, Ebersol’s wife has been staying at St. Mary’s Hospital and has requested privacy for her family.
St. James is survived by Ebersol, four children, and seven grandchildren.
