Her performance in the Miracle Worker was nothing less than phenomenal.
From Fox News.
Patty Duke, who won an Oscar as a teen for “The Miracle Worker” and maintained a long and successful career throughout her life, has died. She was 69.
Duke’s agent confirmed her death to the Associated Press saying she died early Tuesday morning of sepsis from a ruptured intestine.
Duke celebrated her 30th wedding anniversary two weeks ago and tweeted about the occasion. It was her last message to fans via her verified Twitter account.
Duke’s family released a statement through her publicist.
Award-winning actress Patty Duke poses for photographers following an unveiling ceremony, honoring her with the 2,260th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles, California August, 17, 2004.
“This morning, our beloved wife, mother and matriarch and the exquisite artist, humanitarian and champion for mental health, Anna Patty Duke Pearce, closed her eyes, quieted her pain and ascended into a beautiful place. We celebrate the infinite love and compassion she shared through her work and throughout her life.”
Duke, born Anna Marie Pearce, followed on her early success playing the young Helen Keller with a popular sitcom, “The Patty Duke Show,” which aired in the mid-1960s. She played dual roles under a then-unconventional premise: identical twins living in Brooklyn Heights, N.Y.
……In addition to the Oscar she took home at age 16, Duke won several Emmys at the height of her career for roles in “My Sweet Charlie,” “Captains and the Kings” and the TV adaptation of “The Miracle Worker.” She also won two Golden Globes, one for Most Promising Newcomer in 1963 and another for her role in “Me, Natalie” in 1970.
I always admired her. She had a lot of integrity and class; a rarity in Hollywood.