Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic Valerie Mahaffey died in Los Angeles on Friday, May 30, according to her husband, Joseph Kell, perVariety TheBig Skyactress was 71 and had been diagnosed with cancer She famously won the Outstanding Supporting Actress Emmy for her role in CBS'Northern Exposurein 1992 Valerie Mahaffey, the Emmy-winning actress known for her roles inNorthern ExposureandBig Sky, has died. She was 71. Mahaffey's husband, Joseph Kell, toldVarietythat she died on Friday, May 30, after being diagnosed with cancer. "I have lost the love of my life, and America has lost one of its most endearing actresses. She will be missed," Kell said in a touching tribute, per the outlet. Mahaffey's publicist Jillian Roscoe also confirmed the news of her death toThe Hollywood Reporter. Sergei Bachlakov/ABC via Getty Mahaffey starred in several notable acting roles throughout her career, appearing on shows includingNorthern Exposure(1991—1994),Desperate Housewives(2006-2012),Young Sheldon(2017-2020), andDead to Me(2019-2022). She also starred in the moviesFrench Exit(2020) withMichelle Pfeiffer,Sully(2016), oppositeTom Hanks,Seabiscuit(2003) andJungle 2 Jungle(1997). Mahaffey was born in Indonesia to a Canadian mother and Texan father and raised there until the age of 11. She later moved to Nigeria and England before finally relocating with her family to Austin, Texas, where she graduated from high school and attended the University of Texas, perVarietyandTHR. Mahaffey got her break as an actress starring on New York City's Broadway in the late 1970s. She starred on Broadway six times in the playsDraculaandPlay Memory,directed by Harold Prince, perTHR. While appearing on Broadway, Mahaffey also starred in the NBC soapThe Doctors, in her Daytime Emmy-nominated role as Ashley Bennett from 1979 to 1980, perVariety. The late actress later won an Outstanding Supporting Actress Emmy in 1992 for her role as hypochondriac Eve in CBS'Northern Exposure. She starred on the show for five episodes over three seasons in the early 1990s, perTHR. Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via Getty Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE's free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Mahaffey's most recent roles were in the Apple TV+ seriesEcho 3in 2022 and the filmThe 8th Day, released in March 2025, according toIMDB. The actress is survived by her husband Kell and their daughter Alice, perTHR. Mahaffey's representatives did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment on May 31. Read the original article onPeople