A ‘Growing Pains’ Actress Has Passed Away: Betty McGuire Was 100

Betty McGuire, an actress best known for her role as Maggie Seaver’s mother, Kate Malone, in the ’80s sitcom Growing Pains, has passed away. She was 100 years old.

Keith Gerchak, the actress’s POA, confirmed the news to Variety. She died on Oct. 8 at the Motion Picture & Television Fund’s Wasserman Campus in Woodland Hills, Calif. The cause of death was natural causes.

Born in March 1926, McGuire began her stage career in 1955, with an appearance in the play Plain and Fancy. Her first small screen role was on The Doris Day Show in 1973. She then played Sister Mary Quacker in the 1978 film Cheech & Chong’s Up in Smoke.

In her small-screen career, McGuire appeared in various hit shows, including Hill Street Blues, St. Elsewhere, Little House on the Prairie, ER, and CSI: Miami. In addition to her recurring role in Growing Pains, the actress appeared in Falcon Crest as Mrs. Fraser.

After appearing in the 2009 film Play the Game, McGuire retired from acting and volunteered as a receptionist at the Coalition for Economic Survival. As a resident at The Motion Picture & Television Fund Home, she hosted her own talk show, GabFest, on the community’s closed-circuit station, Channel 22.

“I’ve got to tell you, I’m a happy camper,” she said about the show during a 2019 NBC News interview. “To have the opportunity to produce, to get to interview people. Wow! That’s pretty wonderful.”

McGuire notably has no survivors.