It’s sad to see yet another person who contributed to Star Trek pass away. Sure, most of you cool kids know her as the original Major “Hot Lips” Houlihan in MASH the film but Sally played Dr. Elizabeth Dehner in the second Star Trek pilot which convinced NBC to pick up the show. It is a bummer her character was killed off. My fingers are crossed the writers and producers will find a way to bring the doomed psychiatrist back for a while in the upcoming Star Trek: Strange New Worlds since M’Benga will be amongst the crew.
The other big role Sally had in my life was the English professor in Rodney Dangerfield’s most successful (but not his best) film Back to School. She was pretty convincing and cool for my tastes. At the end, the last thing I recall her doing was playing Marc Maron’s ideal mom in his IFC series.
Thanks for everything Sally! I’m also glad to read how you stood up to Robert Altman with the nude scene/prank in MASH. Maybe I will get around to watching the original movie because the maudlin SitCom portrayed your character as uptight yet also an asshole until Frank Burns exits halfway through the run.