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Catherine O’Hara, the Emmy-winning actress and comedy icon, died at age 71, leaving behind a career and legacy that spanned five decades. From sketch comedy roots to beloved film and television roles, O’Hara became one of the most distinctive performers of her generation, celebrated for her wit, versatility, and fearless creativity.
From Second City to Hollywood Fame
O’Hara began her comic career in 1974 at Toronto’s Second City Theatre, where she worked alongside other comedy legends and honed her improvisational style. According to Wikipedia, she soon became a standout performer on Second City TV (SCTV), earning an Emmy Award for outstanding writing and building a reputation for sharp character work and celebrity impressions.
Her film career took off in the 1980s with supporting roles before she gained widespread recognition as Delia Deetz in Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice and as Kate McCallister in Home Alone and Home Alone 2: Lost in New York.
She later became a fixture in Christopher Guest’s mockumentaries, including Best in Show and A Mighty Wind, further cementing her status as a comedy favorite.
O’Hara reached a career peak playing Moira Rose on Schitt’s Creek, a role that earned her several awards, including the 2020 Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series, along with a Golden Globe and a SAG Award.
Accepting the honor, she said per Daily Mail, “I will forever be grateful to Eugene and Daniel Levy for the opportunity to play a woman of a certain age, my age, who gets to fully be herself.”
Catherine O’Hara’s Legacy Across Film and Television
In later years, O’Hara continued to evolve as a performer. She appeared in Apple TV+’s satirical comedy The Studio in 2025, earning a Primetime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series, and guest-starred in HBO’s The Last of Us, showcasing her dramatic range.
Per Daily Mail, O’Hara, known for her bold instincts, once explained her approach to improvisation, saying, “My crutch was, in improvs, when in doubt, play insane. Because you didn’t have to excuse anything that came out of your mouth. It didn’t have to make sense.”
Nearly a year before her death, she also displayed her trademark humor during a 2025 interview when she quipped, “Am I dying or something?”
Born in Toronto, O’Hara held dual Canadian and American citizenship, was appointed to the Order of Canada in 2017, and was named honorary mayor of Brentwood, Los Angeles, in 2021. She is survived by her husband, Bo Welch, and their two sons.
