Theresa Saldana, the actress best known for her roles in the movie "Raging Bull" and ABC's "The Commish," died Monday. She was 61.
A cause of death wasn't immediately released. The actress had been hospitalized at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in
Los Angeles, Variety reported.
Saldana, who survived being stabbed 10 times by a stalker in 1982, was a longtime advocate for victims of stalking, and she went on to found the advocacy group Victims for Victims, star in the 1984 TV movie "Victims for Victims: The Theresa Saldana Story," and publish a memoir
"Beyond Survival," in 1987, the Los Angeles Times reported.
She survived the attack when a Sparkletts water truck driver came to her rescue and subdued her attacker until police arrived.
The TV movie was nominated for a prime-time Emmy Award. In 1994, Saldana was nominated for a Golden Globe for her role on "The Commish" as the wife of the title character played by Michael Chiklis, according to the newspaper.
Her former costar tweeted about her death on Tuesday.
Saldana appeared on 37 TV shows before retiring from acting in 2004, including "T.J. Hooker," "Cagney & Lacey," "Simon & Simon," "Matlock," "Hunter," "Falcon Crest," and "MacGyver." Her movie creds included roles in the 1978 film "I Wanna Hold your Hand," and as the wife of Joe Pesci's character in "Raging Bull."
Saldana is survived by her husband, Phil Peters, and a daughter.
Twitter users shared memories of the actress.
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