Helen Gallagher, the acclaimed stage and television actress best known for her iconic role as Maeve Ryan on the ABC daytime drama Ryan’s Hope, has died at the age of 98.
Gallagher died Sunday in a hospital in Manhattan, confirmed by the Herbert Berghof Studio in New York, where she had taught musical theater singing for years.
The Big Apple native’s Broadway debut came in 1952 when she was cast as Gladys Bumps in the musical Pal Joey, which earned her a Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical.
She went on to star in numerous Golden Age Broadway musicals, including The Pajama Game, Mame, Finian’s Rainbow and Sweet Charity, the latter alongside Gwen Verdon and Ruth Buzzi.
In 1970, Gallagher earned another Tony nomination for her role in No, No, Nanette, where she played the original Lucille Early and ultimately won the Tony for Best Actress in a Musical for her performance.
During her Broadway career, she also appeared in revivals of Guys and Dolls and Brigadoon, solidifying her place as one of the leading actresses of her generation.
Helen Gallagher, the acclaimed stage and television actress best known for her iconic role as Maeve Ryan on the ABC daytime drama Ryan’s Hope, has died at the age of 98.
Gallagher died Sunday in a Manhattan hospital, confirmed by the Herbert Berghof Studio in New York, where she had taught musical theater singing for many years; (Ryan’s Hope 1979)
However, it was in 1975 that Gallagher found a new audience when she was cast as Maeve Ryan, the matriarch of the Ryan family, on the soap opera Ryan’s Hope.
The show, which ran on ABC for thirteen years, featured Gallagher as the heart and soul of a close-knit Irish-American family in New York City.
Over the course of the series, Gallagher was nominated for five Daytime Emmy Awards and won three times (1976, 1977 and 1988).
Gallagher’s portrayal of Maeve, alongside her on-screen husband Johnny Ryan (played by Bernard Barrow), was central to the show’s success.
The series gave early roles to future stars such as Christian Slater, Kate Mulgrew and Marg Helgenberger.
After Ryan’s Hope, Gallagher continued her television career with guest roles on other daytime soap operas, including Another World, All My Children and One Life to Live.
She also appeared in episodic TV dramas such as Law & Order and The Cosby Mysteries.
Gallagher’s talents were not limited to daytime television, as she occasionally appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show and several talk shows, including The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.
The Big Apple native’s Broadway debut came in 1952 when she was cast as Gladys Bumps in the musical Pal Joey, which earned her a Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical.
However, it was in 1975 that Gallagher found a new audience when she was cast as Maeve Ryan, the matriarch of the Ryan family, on the soap opera Ryan’s Hope.
In addition to her extensive television career, Gallagher also dabbled in film.
She appeared in the 1960 drama Strangers When We Meet, starring Kirk Douglas and Kim Novak, and later worked with director James Ivory on Roseland (1977).
Her last film role came in 1997 in the independent feature film Neptune’s Rocking Horse.
In addition to her illustrious work on stage and screen, Gallagher was also a dedicated teacher, serving for many years as a faculty member at the Herbert Berghof Studio.