Actress Jennifer Runyon, known for her roles in Ghostbusters and the sitcom Charles in Charge, has died at the age of 65.
Runyon’s close friend, Erin Murphy, announced her death on social media, writing: ‘So sad to share that my friend Jennifer Runyon Corman has passed away after a brief battle with cancer.
‘Some people you just know you’ll be friends with before you even meet. She was a special lady. I’ll miss you Jenn. My thoughts are with your family and beautiful children.’
Runyon built a steady career across film and television in the 1980s, becoming a familiar face in a mix of cult films, network sitcoms and guest roles.
She made her feature film debut in the slasher movie To All a Good Night, an early entry in the wave of horror films that defined the era.
She later appeared in the 1984 college comedy Up the Creek before landing a supporting role in Ivan Reitman’s blockbuster supernatural comedy Ghostbusters.
Playing the young college student Venkman is pursuing at the beginning of the film, Runyon was the quintessential 80s bombshell.
The same year proved pivotal for Runyon on television.
She played Gwendolyn Pierce during the first season of Charles in Charge, the sitcom about a college student who works as a live-in babysitter for a suburban family.
Though the series later returned with a different cast lineup, Runyon’s role in its original season helped establish her as a recognisable TV presence.
In 1988, Runyon stepped into one of television’s most beloved franchises when she portrayed Cindy Brady in the reunion movie A Very Brady Christmas, part of the enduring The Brady Bunch universe.
That same year, she starred in the teen comedy The In Crowd and appeared in the comedy film 18 Again!. She also appeared in the pilot episode of the science-fiction series Quantum Leap.
Throughout her career, Runyon frequently appeared in popular television dramas and comedies, including guest roles on Murder, She Wrote, A Man Called Sarge, and Beverly Hills, 90210.
Runyon was born on April 1, 1960, in Chicago to radio announcer and disc jockey Jim Runyon and actress Jane Roberts.
Runyon’s career captured a moment in 1980s Hollywood when young actors moved fluidly between network television, studio comedies and cult genre films.
In 1991, she married Todd Corman, a collegiate basketball coach who also worked in film and television production between sports seasons.
The couple had two children, son Wyatt and daughter Bayley.
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