Barbara Rush, Former Star of 'All My Children' and '7th Heaven,' Passes Away at 97

Actress Barbara Rush, of All My Children and 7th Heaven fame, died at 97. Rush's daughter, Fox News correspondent Claudia Cowan, confirmed her mother's death on March 31. "My mother peacefully passed away at 5:28 this evening. I was with her this morning and she was waiting for me to return home safely," Cowan said. "It's fitting she left on Easter, one of her favorite holidays. Now Easter holds greater significance for my family. Rush had a long on-camera career."

In 1954, she won the Golden Globe for Most Promising Newcomer – Female for her role in the sci-fi film It Came from Outer Space. In Hollywood, she starred with Dean Martin, Paul Newman, Frank Sinatra, Rock Hudson, Kirk Douglas, and others. Rush moved to TV in the late 60s, appearing on Ben Casey, Dr. Kildare, The Fugitive, Ironside, and more. She starred in every episode of NBC's Flamingo Road (1980-1982) & had roles on Knight Rider, The Love Boat, Magnum P.I.

Before her role on All My Children, Rush was known for playing Marsha Russell on Peyton Place. The soap aired from 1964-1969. Rush made her Peyton Place debut in 1968. To young TV fans, Rush is famous for her role as Ruth Camden on 7th Heaven. She played the mother of Eric Camden and grandmother to his seven children, Matt, Mary, Lucy, Simon, Ruthie, Sam, and David.

Rush was a renowned theater star, earning a Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award for her one-woman show A Woman of Independent Means, portraying a character at various stages of life from 7 to 70. She also toured in productions like Private Lives and Steel Magnolias. Rush was married three times, including a brief union with actor Jeffrey Hunter from 1950 to 1955. The Can't Stop the Music actress later married publicist Warren Cowan in 1959, divorcing in 1969.

After meeting at a concert, Rush married sculptor Jim Gruzalski in 1970. They split after three years and, along with daughter Claudia, Rush had son Christopher Hunter with her first husband.