Jennifer Runyon dead: ‘Ghostbusters,’ ‘Brady Christmas’ actor was 65
Jennifer Runyon, a film and television actor known best for her roles on “Ghostbusters,” “A Very Brady Christmas” and “Charles in Charge,” has died. She was 65.
Runyon died Friday, according to a Sunday statement reportedly posted to her social media account, which has since gone private.
“This past Friday, our beloved Jennifer passed away. It was a long and arduous journey that ended with her surrounded by her family,” the statement read, according to ABC7. “She will always be remembered for her love of life and her devotion to her family and friends. Rest in peace our Jenn.”
“Bewitched” actor Erin Murphy shared in a Sunday post on Facebook and Instagram that Runyon died “after a brief battle with cancer.”
“Some people you just know you’ll be friends with before you even meet,” Murphy wrote in her tribute. “She was a special lady.”
On the 1980s sitcom “Charles in Charge,” Runyon portrayed Gwendolyn Pierce, a fellow college student of the show’s titular live-in housekeeper (portrayed by Scott Baio) and the target of his affections.
In his Facebook tribute, fellow “Charles in Charge” actor Willie Aames described Runyon as a “dear dear friend, muse, and encourager.”
“From the moment we met on set all those decades ago- I knew you ‘got me,’” wrote Aames. “Watching you slip away these last few months was one of the hardest times of my life… I can still hear your voice so clearly. No one will ever be able to fill the massive hole that’s been left in our hearts… ever.”
A Chicago native, Runyon made her television debut as Sally Frame in the long-running soap opera “Another World.” She also appeared in episodes of “Magnum, P.I.,” “Quantum Leap” and “Murder, She Wrote.” Runyon also portrayed the grown-up Cindy Brady in “A Very Brady Christmas.”
Her film credits include the 1984 classic “Ghostbusters,” where she appeared as one of the students participating in the ESP study conducted by Bill Murray’s Peter Venkman.
On Instagram, Runyon’s daughter Bayley Corman, an actor who has appeared on TV shows such as “Chilling Adventures of Sabrina,” “Bel-Air” and “Running Point,” described her mother as “the kindest most compassionate person i’ve ever known.”
“All of the best parts of me came from you,” Corman wrote in her tribute. “i would give anything for one more day together.”
