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Anne Heche, Emmy-Winning Another World Alum, Dead at 53
Friday, August 12th, 2022

News doesn’t get much sadder than this.
We knew that her chances of pulling through were slim. But still… this one stings. On August 12, a week after a devastating accident, Anne Heche has passed away at age 53.
Over the course of her career, the actress appeared in pretty much every kind of movie that there is: action (Six Days, Seven Nights with Harrison Ford), drama (Donnie Brasco with Johnny Depp), comedy (Milk Money with Melanie Griffith), disaster (Volcano with Tommy Lee Jones)… She even succeeded Janet Leigh in a remake of the ultimate slasher flick (Psycho).

Psycho promo shots taken in 1998…
Credit: Universal/Courtesy of the Everett Collection (2)
A True Star Turn
Despite her vast resumé, which also includes several of her own primetime series (most notably Men in Trees with second husband James Tupper), Heche will always be most vividly remembered by soap fans for her 1987-91 stint on Another World. When she was cast, the deck was stacked against her, as she was replacing popular Emmy winner Ellen Wheeler as naughty-’n’-nice twins Victoria and Marley Hudson. But the newcomer slayed in the roles and won her own Emmy in ’91.
Remind yourself of just how amazing she was by taking a peek at the below clip, in which she plays both of Donna’s daughters.
A Lifetime of Struggle
Heche’s showbiz career might have been enviable, but her inner life was troubled. In her memoir, Call My Crazy, she alleged that after being sexually abused by her father during her infancy, she created for herself an alternate dimension where she hung out with Jesus Christ’s half sister, Celestia. In 2000, she drove to a stranger’s ranch house on Ecstasy and ultimately told sheriff’s deputies that she was going to take everyone back to heaven in a spaceship.
More: Then and now photos of Another World stars

Heche and then-girlfriend Ellen DeGeneres in 1999…
Credit: Ron Wolfson/Courtesy of the Everett Collection
A Tragic Ending
On August 5, after Heche crashed her car into a house, she was left in a coma with severe burns. She is survived by two children, Homer Laffoon, 20, and Atlas Tupper, 13. “Anne had a huge heart and touched everyone she met with her generous spirit,” a representative for the actress told our sister site Variety. “More than her extraordinary talent, she saw spreading kindness and joy as her life’s work — especially moving the needle for acceptance of who you love.
“She will be remembered for her courageous honesty and dearly missed for her light.”
Pay your respects to the other soap alumni we’ve lost in 2022 with the below photo gallery.
Video: YouTube/Rachel S
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