Nancy Marchand

 ( 1928 Births ) 

Marchand originated the roles of Vinnie Phillips on the CBS soap opera Love of Life and Theresa Lamonte on the NBC soap opera Another World. She also starred as matriarch Edith Cushing on Lovers and Friends, a short-lived soap opera.

Marchand was renowned for her roles as patrician newspaper publisher Margaret Pynchon on Lou Grant, winning four as Best Supporting Actress in a Dramatic Series, and as matriarch Livia Soprano, mother of Tony Soprano on the HBO series The Sopranos, which earned her a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series, as well as two Emmy Award nominations.

She appeared in many anthology series in the early days of television, including The Philco Television Playhouse (on which she starred in Marty opposite Rod Steiger), Kraft Television Theatre, Studio One, and Playhouse 90. Additional television credits include The Law and Mr. Jones, , Law & Order, , Coach, and Night Court.

Marchand's feature film credits included The Bachelor Party, Ladybug Ladybug, Me, Natalie, Tell Me That You Love Me, Junie Moon, The Hospital, The Bostonians, From the Hip, Jefferson in Paris, Brain Donors, Reckless, , Sabrina and Dear God.

Marchand's death occurred between Seasons 2 and 3 of The Sopranos, before a plot line prominently involving her character was resolved. Her death was written into the plot, and one final scene was created for her using computer-generated imagery, which was a new technology at the time, together with outtakes from previous seasons.

Marchand suffered from lung cancer, emphysema, and COPD. She died on June 18, 2000, a day before her 72nd birthday, in Stratford, Connecticut.Gussow, Mel. ( The New York Times). "Obituaries: Nancy Marchand, Actress Known for 'Lou Grant,' 'Sopranos'". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. June 2, 2000. p. B7. Retrieved July 23, 2023. She was posthumously inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame.