NEWS'Desperate Housewives' Actress Kathryn Joosten Dead at 72
Jan. 26 2021, Updated 12:21 p.m. ET
Kathryn Joosten, most recently known for her role as Karen McCluskey on Desperate Housewives, has passed away. She was 72.
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Kathryn had battled lung cancer for the past 11 years. According to her publicist, Nadine Jolson, she passed in her home yesterday, surrounded by family and friends.
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A statement from the family said that Kathryn "was surrounded by love and humor till the end. We were laughing out our tears."
Kathryn, who did start acting until age 42, won two Emmys for her Desperate Housewives role. Her co-stars took to Twitter to express their condolences:
"Rest in peace, she was an amazing woman and a wonderful actress," Felicity Huffman wrote.
Brenda Strong said in a Tweet: "Wisteria Lane won't be the same without you."
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In a statement to E! News, Desperate Housewives creator Marc Cherry said:
"The character of Mrs. McCluskey was created for a single episode. We then cast Kathryn Joosten and she infused the part with so much feisty wit and curmudgeonly bravado, we knew we had to move her onto Wisteria Lane for the run of the series. I will forever miss her, as a co-worker and as a friend."
Kathryn is survived by her two sons, Jonathan and Timothy. Our thoughts are with them at this time.
RIP, Kathryn!
