Recent Obituaries, Classic Films Only

[CBHagman]

100. Patty Duke, actress.

There have been a number of notables we've lost over the last couple of months, and I am going to begin with the most recent one, Patty Duke.

[url]http://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-patty-duke-20160330-story.html[/url]



Patty Duke came to fame as a teenager, combining both a masterful talent for dramatic acting with a sunny, all-American image that enchanted both TV and film audiences. But her admirers had no clue about the much-uglied reality of Duke's childhood, marred by nightmarish abuse and exploitation. Overcoming her troubles in her adult years, Duke became an outspoken advocate for mental health causes.

Duke, who won an Oscar at age 16 for her portrayal of Helen Keller in "The Miracle Worker" but was more known for her bouncy 1960s TV sitcom "The Patty Duke Show," died Tuesday at age 69 at a hospital in Coeur D'Alene, Idaho

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It wasn't until 1982 that a psychiatrist diagnosed Duke with bipolar disorder, then known as manic depression. With a combination of medication and therapy, the actress was eventually able to reach equilibrium. In 1988, she revealed her long battle with mental illness and the harrowing abuse she'd suffered as a child in her autobiography, "Call Me Anna," written with Times film critic Kenneth Turan. The book, which became a bestseller and was made into a 1990 TV movie for ABC (in which Duke also starred), is widely credited with helping to remove the stigma attached to mental illness.

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Duke's struggles with mental illness did little to dampen her popularity within the industry. She served as president of the Screen Actors Guild from 1985 to 1988, the second female president of the union.