Farewell to an Icon

When a paparazzo asked Catherine O'Hara in February 2024 which of her many legendary roles she'd like to be remembered for, the actress earnestly replied, "Mother of my children."

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Less than two years later, O'Hara's adult sons, Matthew and Luke, are grieving the sudden loss of their beloved mother, who died on Jan. 30. She was 71.

A 911 call revealed O'Hara had suffered "breathing difficulty" at her L.A. home before being rushed to a nearby hospital in "serious" condition. Her official cause of death has yet to be revealed, but Creative Artists Agency tells Us she had "a brief illness."

The actress once said her sons, Matthew and Luke (seen here in 2003), "always [came] first" over her "working life."

The sixth of seven children, O'Hara grew up in Toronto, where she began her career as an understudy for Gilda Radner in The Second City in 1974.