Actress Valerie Mahaffey, known for Northern Exposure and Sully, died on May 30, 2025, following a battle with cancer. She was 71 years old.

Mahaffey won an Emmy for her recurring role as hypochondriac Eve in Northern Exposure. She starred in the biographical Sully, and played Victoria MacElroy in Young Sheldon.

She was born on June 16, 1953, in Sumatra, Indonesia, then spent her childhood there, Nigeria, and the UK before the family settled in Austin, Texas. She started her acting career in New York City, appearing on Broadway in Rex, Dracula, and Play Memory, among other shows.

Mahaffey’s first onscreen work was in the TV movie Tell Me My Name in 1977. Two years later she joined the soap opera The Doctors, appearing in 104 episodes from ’79 to ’80. She spent most of her career appearing in TV shows and TV movies with early work in Women of Valor, Fresno, Perry Mason movies, Quantum Leap, and Cheers.

She was in Seinfeld, starred in the sitcom The Powers that Be, appeared in L.A. Law, ER, Ally McBeal, The West Wing, Frasier, Without a Trace, Boston Legal, Hannah Montana, and Desperate Housewives. Some of her later work included Glee, Grey’s Anatomy, Franklin & Bash, Devious Maids, Big Sky, and Dead to Me.

Her film work also included Jungle 2 Jungle, Seabiscuit, Jack and Jill, The Witch Files, and her last role was in 2025’s The 8th Day.