Actress Sperber Loses Breast Cancer Fight



Nov 30, 11:49 PM (ET)

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Actress Wendie Jo Sperber, who starred opposite Tom Hanks on TV's "Bosom Buddies" and who in his words became "a walking inspiration" after she contracted cancer, has died. She was in her 40s.

Sperber died at home Tuesday after an eight-year battle with breast cancer, publicist Jo-Ann Geffen said Wednesday.

A Los Angeles native, Sperber appeared in dozens of television shows and movies, including all three "Back to the Future" films.

Her publicist first said Sperber was 46, but later said she was 43 based on an Internet resource. The Associated Press in September reported Sperber's age as 47.

Sperber also had roles in Steven Spielberg's "1941," Robert Zemeckis'"I Wanna Hold Your Hand," and Neal Israel's "Moving Violations" and "Bachelor Party." Her television credits include "Murphy Brown,""Private Benjamin,""Will & Grace" and "8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter."

After being diagnosed with breast cancer in 1997, the actress became an advocate for cancer care. In 2001, she founded the weSPARK Cancer Support Center, which provides free emotional support, information and social activities for individuals and families affected by cancer.

Sperber helped unveil and promote a breast cancer stamp for the U.S. Postal Service in 1998, Geffen said.

"The memory of Wendie Jo is that of a walking inspiration," Hanks said in a statement. "She met the challenges of her illness with love, cheer, joy and altruism. We are going to miss her as surely as we are all better for knowing her."

Sperber is survived by a son and daughter, her parents, two sisters and a brother.

~ this made me really sad. RIP Wendie Jo.

I was watching the back to the future movies just the other day, that sucks

yeah.

i hate when people my age or younger die, & cancer is the worst.

Eddie guerrero who was one of the best pro wrestlers ever ( I know wrestlers get a lot of crap but this guy could really act, he had perfect comedic timing he could cry he could do anything) died at 38 the other day. to a heart attack brought on by drug abuse and alcahole abuse in his younger days but he had just celebrated his 4th year of sobriety and was really starting to turn his life around so that was a real shame too. he had 3 girls

yeah, i heard about that. Vyrus was real upset about it.

people under 99 aren't supposed to die.

so many people are dieing... this is sad... I miss John Ritter....

Eddie was great, He was a guy that was just plain fun to watch. He had great ring skills, good on the mike, and you knew something interesting was going to happen when he showed up.

PS: Who is your favorite of all time? I got to go with "The Heartbreak Kid" Shawn Michaels, with Bret Hart coming in close second. Those were the days...

The last week's have been pretty crappy for deaths.

Richard Burns (a Rally car driver) died on the 24th from astrocytoma (brain tumor). He was only 34.

i think i hate when people die from brain tumors more than anything else. that & cancer. if it's brain cancer, that's like the ultimate worst thing ever.

are you asking who everybody's favourite wrestler is, George? if you are, mine is Sting, cuz he was bee's favourite when he was little. i barely know any of em though. when I was a kid, we had the old timey 'championship wrestling' wrestlers, who were in black & white, & all weighed like 300 pounds, & were flabby. those were the days.

That trilogy is cursed I tell you! Michael J. Fox with Parkinson's, Wendie Jo with breast cancer, and Christopher Lloyd is on "Stacked" now

I didn't know Michael Fox died.

no he's not dead he's just got Parkinson's

That is so sad. My aunt (in-law) died recently of lung cancer and a pastor friend of mine, his son died of brain cancer. He was only 15.

That was a really good movie.

She will be missed.