Former child star and Oscar winner Patty Duke passed away today at the age of 69. Patty Duke was best known for her dual role on the 1960’s sitcom The Patty Duke Show and her breakout performance The Miracle Worker(1962), where she won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for playing Helen Keller.
Actor Sean Astin, son of Patty Duke took to social media to show love for his mother by releasing a statement.
“We celebrate the infinite love and compassion she shared through her work and throughout her life.”
He also wrote, “Her work endures …” and included a link to a site raising funds for the Patty Duke Mental Health Initiative.
“This initiative will fuel a multi-level approach to achieving results for those suffering with mental illness and their families and communities,” Astin wrote on the funding page. “Public awareness campaigns, lobbying efforts and supporting a multitude of mental health programs big and small will be organized, prioritized and vigorously pursued.”
In 1982 Patty Duke was diagnosed with bi-polar disorder
Astin is best known for playing Samwise Gamgee in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, Mikey Walsh inThe Gooniesand the lead in Rudy.