Liz Sheridan, the actress known for playing Jerry Seinfeld’s mother, Helen, on Seinfeld, died Friday of natural causes, according to Deadline via her rep, Amanda Hendon. Sheridan was 93.
Sheridan has 85 credits as an actress dating back to 1977. In the 1970s, she appeared in films and with shows such as Kojak, The White Shadow, Gimme a Break!, Who’s That Girl, Star 80, and Jekyll & Hyde: Together Again. Sheridan continued her TV career in the 1980s such as One Day at a Time, Three’s a Crowd, Scarecrow and Mrs. King, The A-Team, Newhart, Remington Steele, Moonlighting, and Murder, She Wrote before landing her recurring gig as Raquel in ALF from 1986-1990.
She would then land her role on Seinfeld, in which she appeared in over 20 episodes, spanning from 1990 to the show’s finale in 1998.
Outside of Seinfeld, she appeared in many more shows and films throughout the 90s including Herman’s Head, Only You, Melrose Place, Wishman, Empty Nest, Tom, The Itsy Bitsy Spider, Blossom, Double Rush, Sliders, Forget Paris, Cleghorne!, Wedding Bell Blues, Always Say Goodbye, and Life With Louie, in which she had a recurring role on as Mrs. Stillman.
During the 2000s, she appeared in films such as Now You Know, Closing the Deal, Play the Game, and had guest appearances on TV series including Numbers and American Dad! Her last on-screen appearances was in the film Trim in 2010.
Sheridan also appeared on Broadway in the 1977 musical Happy End alongside Christopher Lloyd (Back To The Future) and Meryl Streep (Don’t Look Up). She also wrote a book about her romantic relationship with actor James Dean (Rebel Without A Case) during the 1950s titled Dizzy and Jimmy: My Life with James Dean – A Love Story, which was published in 2000.
Sheridan is the second Seinfeld cast member to pass away in the last month. Estelle Harris (Toy Story 2), who played George Costanza’s mother, also named Estelle, passed away at age 93 as well earlier this month. Jerry Stiller, who played Costanza’s father, Frank, passed away in 2020.