The great actress and lovely person, Mary Beth Hurt, has died at 79.
A three time Tony Award nominee, Hurt was the wife of director-writer Paul Schrader. They had two children.
Mary Beth lived with Alzheimer’s for the last few years. A couple of years ago Paul moved her into a new facility on the West Side of Manhattan where he lived in an apartment a few floors away. He and their children were constants in her life. She had many friends visit often, including Glenn Close.
Mary Beth Hurt became famous overnight in the 1970s when she starred in Woody Allen’s “Interiors.” After that she shined in a string of hits including “The World According to Garp,” “Chilly Scenes of Winter,” and “The Age of Innocence.”
From Iowa originally, Hurt (she got her last name from a first marriage to the late William Hurt) became a quintessential New York actress. Her list of theater credits is long including “Crimes of the Heart,” which earned her an Obie Award and a Tony nod. She went on to play the same role in the movie.
In that early time, from the late 70s through the 80s, it was always exciting to Mary Beth hurt in a play or movie. She was a serious fine actress who oozed with charm. She will be much missed.
