The veteran actress, who was nominated for Academy Awards for her starring roles in An Unmarried Woman and Starting Over, passed away yesterday at the age of 66. Jill Clayburgh died at her home in Lakeville, Connecticut after a battle with leukemia that spanned more than 20 years.
With a degree in the theatre from Sarah Lawrence College, Clayburgh began her career in the 1960s. She regularly played complex, intelligent women. On stage, she appeared in The Rothschilds (her Broadway debut), Noel Coward’s Design for Living, and the original Broadway production of Pippin with John Rubenstein and Irene Ryan (The Beverly Hillbillies). Her last appearance on Broadway was in a 2006 revival of Barefoot in the Park with Tony Roberts and Amanda Peet.
