(NEXSTAR) – Actress Carole Cook, well known for her work on screen and stage, has died, according to multiple reports. She was 98.
Cook’s husband Tom Troupe confirmed her death Wednesday, The Hollywood Reporter and Deadline report. Her agent told CNN Cook died “peacefully” from heart failure.
The Abilene, Texas, native debuted on Broadway in 1954’s “Threepenny Opera,” according to Deadline. She would also star in “42 Street” and “Hello, Dolly!”
Cook was also known for her film roles, which included appearances in “The Incredible Mr. Limpet” and “Sixteen Candles,” as well as voicing the character Pearl in Disney’s “Home on the Range.”
More recently, in 2006, Cook appeared in an episode of “Grey’s Anatomy.” Her most recent credit was in the 2018 musical “Still Waiting In The Wings,” according to her IMDb page.
Cook’s other acting credits include guest appearances on Lucille Ball’s “The Lucy Show” and “Here’s Lucy,” Marta on “Maude,” and Charlie Cagney’s girlfriend on “Cagney & Lacey.”
Cook credited Ball with giving her her big acting break, telling Queer Voices in 2019 that she even lived in Ball’s guesthouse after moving out to California. She also said Ball gave her the name ‘Carole’ – she was born Mildred Frances Cook – in honor of actress Carole Lombard.
That same year, the Secret Service confirmed it was looking into comments Cook made after she brought up the name of presidential assassin John Wilkes Booth when asked for her thoughts on President Trump. She later said the Secret Service “couldn’t have been nicer.”
Cook was also a longtime advocate in the fight against HIV and AIDS.