Jerry Seinfeld'a TV mom on ‘Seinfeld,’ dies at 93

 

Liz Sheridan, who played doting mom to Jerry Seinfeld on his hit sitcom, died early Friday. She was 93.

Sheridan died in her sleep from natural causes, five days after her April 10 birthday, said Amanda Hendon, her longtime representative and friend. She did not provide further details, including where Sheridan was living.

Her “Seinfeld” role as Helen was her best known but followed decades of work on stage and screen. In the 1970s, Sheridan appeared on Broadway in plays and musicals, the latter including “Happy End” with Meryl Streep and “Ballroom.”

“She was always very grateful to her fans and felt blessed to have enjoyed decades of work in the entertainment business,” including performing in her one-woman show, “Mrs. Seinfeld Sings,” Hendon said in a statement.

Another “Seinfeld” mom, Estelle Harris, died two weeks ago on April 2. Harris, who played hot-tempered parent to Jason Alexander’s George Costanza, also was 93.

Sheridan had guest roles on TV series including “Kojak,” “Cagney & Lacey” and “Family Ties,” and played the pesky neighbor Raquel Ochmonek on “ALF” from 1986 to 1990. She was on “Seinfeld” for the show’s 1990 to 1998 run, playing opposite Barney Martin as her husband, Morty.

“How could anyone not like him?” Helen said of her beloved Jerry.

“Liz was always the sweetest, nicest TV mom a son could wish for,” Seinfeld said Friday on Twitter. “Every time she came on our show it was the coziest feeling for me. So lucky to have known her.”

In a 1998 interview with The Associated Press, Sheridan discussed how fond she had become of the comedian.

“I’ll hug him to say goodbye, and I’ll hug him to say hello,” she said. “I told him I love him like he was my son. He said, ‘I know. I love you and Barney like you were my father and mother.’ ”

The actor appeared in films including “Legal Eagles,” “Forget Paris” and “Wedding Bell Blues.” The 2010 TV movie “The Rooneys” was among her final credits.

In her book “Dizzy & Jimmy,” Sheridan recounted a romance in the early 1950s with a then-unknown James Dean. Sheridan, nicknamed Dizzy, was a young nightclub dancer in New York City when she met Dean. After they split, he became a star with films including “Rebel Without a Cause.” He died in a car crash in 1955, at age 24.

Born Elizabeth Ann Sheridan, the New York native was married to jazz musician William Dale Wales, who died in 2003. Sheridan is survived by her daughter and son-in-law, according to Hendon.