Here's an article from Entertainment Weekly. It has some nice quotes from Eden Riegel and Susan Lucci.

It was a sad day on the set of All My Children Wednesday (Oct. 8) as news spread that show veteran Eileen Herlie had passed away. The actress who played All My Children's Myrtle Fargate died in New York City due to complications from pneumonia at the age of 90.

''Eileen was much loved by every one at All My Children, because she gave so much of herself everyday,'' says Eden Riegel, who has played AMC's Bianca since 2000. ''She lit up the whole studio, corny as it sounds. No one was ever more alive than she.''

Herlie joined the cast of All My Children in 1976 as Myrtle Fargate, a loving and wise mother figure to most of the citizens of Pine Valley, especially Erica Kane (Susan Lucci). ''I'm sure Eileen is lighting up the skies in heaven with her flaming red hair and lovely Scottish accent,'' says Lucci, who's also currently a contestant on Dancing With the Stars. ''The earth's loss is heaven's gain.''

In saying goodbye, the AMC cast and crew shared stories about Herlie, as well as a champagne toast to celebrate her life. ''I think she really would have enjoyed [that],'' Riegel says. ''She loved a good cocktail, loved having an attractive young man around to flirt with, loved getting her hair and makeup done, loved to act, and gave it all she had right up to the end.''

Born and raised in Glasgow, Scotland, Herlie started out acting in the Scottish National Theatre and in the English theater in the company of Tyrone Guthrie. She also played Queen Gertrude on Broadway, opposite Richard Burton's Hamlet, and played the same role in the movie, opposite Sir Laurence Olivier. Other credits include roles in Broadway's The Matchmaker, Take Me Along, All American, and Crown Matrimonial, and the movies Freud and The Seagull with Simone Signoret.

Herlie remained a presence on AMC right up until her death. She most recently appeared on the show on June 23 of this year.

http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20232394,00.html

Heard about this on E Online. Broke my heart. I always loved Eileen on AMC for the years I've watched. May she rest in peace!

Leave it to Susan Lucci to sum up exactly what many of us have likely been thinking.

Eileen was divine. And now she really is.

I think the end of 2003 was a great year for Myrtle and Eileen. She gave some outstanding performance around the revelation that Michael had raped Bianca. I remember the scene at The Boarding House when the police come to search the premises. She sinks into Boyd's arms and later gives the ominous warning that Michael will pay. I would have loved the show to go that direction with the storyline. It would be like Mona killing Jason Maxwell to protect Erica.

Another great performance that year was when Bianca went to The Boarding House and saw Myrtle had not yet thrown out the couch Michael raped her on. Eileen delivered a beautiful soliloquy about how she was going to do things when she was ready and resolved, and how it was her way of fighting Michael for turning her life upside down. Eileen never phoned it in, but she also knew how to enact subtleties to very dramatic moments that the green actor would overact.

Yes and that same year we had some great comic scenes with Myrtle and Simone sharring spiked lemonade--the Boyd (as much as I thought he was a useless character) flirtations, etc

OMG, this is really sad news. RIP Eileen. I will miss the character of myrtle because she is the grandmother/mother/friend we wish we all had.

I miss when the show had people in different professions--and not all rich. It's more interesting having the women of pine vally ahve different businesses--not ALL working at Fusion, etc.

ITA, Co-sign, Amen, pass the cornbread and all that.

New York Times obituary:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/11/arts/tel...nyt&emc=rss

I hope AMC does an episode like they did with Pheobe. Bring back friends and family of Mrytle.

Francesca James, Robin Christopher, Linda Dando HAVE to return if AMC does that kind of episode.

Edited October 11, 200817 yr by Kyle

I hope AMC does an episode like they did with Pheobe. Bring back friends and family of Mrytle.

Francesca James, Robin Christopher, Linda Dando HAVE to return if AMC does that kind of episode.

I hope they devote an entire episode to her. If I recall correctly, Phoebe's funeral had to share the hour with Rylee scenes because TPTB felt that people wouldn't be interested in the episode if it was just a tribute to Phoebe.

If Carruthers were smart she would just hire her good friend Francesca James to handle this properly.

Here is a great scene between Erica and Myrtle from Erica's intervention in 2004.

She is obviously very frail by this point, but man just goes to show you how much of an impact in her frail state she could still have on this show.

RIP Eileen.

I hated to hear this - was so sad. You know that it is coming but you still aren't prepared.

I have been writing a big story for her in my online soap that has gone by the wayside that will explain for me the strong bond that developed instantly between Zach & Myrtle - one of the best things about the Zach character for me. I will greatly miss that onscreen if I start back watching AMC.

As far as sets, my fear is we will lose The Boutique too which is one of the oldest sets on the show. Ann bought The Boutique back in 1970 and then it just gradually passed from one character to another through the years. So sad that they might not ever show it anymore.

I love all the mentions of character that should come back. I will add one more and that is Ellen Dalton. She and Myrtle were always close. Ellen worked for Myrtle at The Boutique or it may have been the other way around - my memory is playing tricks on me right now which one actually owned The Boutique at the time. But they were very good friends for years on the show.

Goes to show you even those Eileen was not feeling that well she gave it all she had!

Ellen did in fact own the Boutique for a time, with Myrtle working for her. I don't remember if Myrtle took full ownership before Ellen and Mark left for Japan or not until their departure.

Here is a great scene between Erica and Myrtle from Erica's intervention in 2004.

She is obviously very frail by this point, but man just goes to show you how much of an impact in her frail state she could still have on this show.

RIP Eileen.

Man, I'm gonna miss Myrtle

Edited October 11, 200817 yr by detroitpiston

Ellen did in fact own the Boutique for a time, with Myrtle working for her. I don't remember if Myrtle took full ownership before Ellen and Mark left for Japan or not until their departure.

Didn't Myrtle own it before Ellen did, though? Like, I think Ann gave it to Myrtle when she left town (to Seattle, I want to say), but then after Kitty died, Myrtle left town with Nigel Fargate and she passed it on down to Ellen.