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AMC’s Eileen Herlie (Myrtle) dies
So we say goodbye to Myrtle Fargate on All My Children.
The actress who played the tell-it-like-it-is, flame-haired confidante of many Pine Valley denizens passed away Wednesday. Eileen Herlie was 90.
Like Anna Lee (General Hospital’s Lila Quartermaine), Eileen remained on screen pretty much until the very end. Myrtle’s last scenes were in June.
The actress — and the character — will be missed.
Check out the video tribute below:
I always enjoyed Myrtle’s no-nonsense approach. It’s no wonder she became a surrogate mother to so many characters, most notably Erica Kane (Susan Lucci) and most recently Zach Slater (Thorsten Kaye).
In fact, it was Myrtle’s scenes with Zach that often gave him a touch of humanity. During those earlier times when I was not such a big fan of Mr. Slater, he would have a scene with the wise Myrtle and I would think, “You know, Zach’s not all that bad.”
I really adored their interactions.
Now that I’ve come to appreciate Zach in his own right, I’ll be extra interested to see how he handles Myrtle’s death.
I assume AMC will address her passing properly. It would be a massive mistake to treat her death as some little thing.
Myrtle may not have played a big role in recent years, but her contribution to Pine Valley was still significant.
Goodnight, Myrtle. And goodnight, Eileen.
AMC … and soaps in general … won’t be quite the same without you.
Permalink | Comments (2) | Post your comment | Categories: All My Children
Comments
By Anne
October 12, 2008 8:28 PM | Link to this
I’ve been watching AMC since it premiered in the 70’s. I always enjoyed Eileen-and her character Myrtle. I could connect with Myrtle so well. I send thoughts and prayers to her family and friends. She will be missed … God Bless
By Kara
October 16, 2008 12:06 AM | Link to this
Hi, Anne.
Myrtle was very special. And by all accounts, so was Eileen. She just sparkled with everyone.
I think that’s part of what’s great about soaps. You can follow characters through decades and really feel connected.
Eileen will definitely be missed.
Thanks for your thoughts.