Canadian actress Catherine O’Hara was a gifted comedienne who starred as Macaulay Culkin’s harried mother in two
Home Alone movies and won an Emmy as the dramatically ditzy wealthy matriarch Moira Rose in
Schitt’s Creek. Born and raised in Toronto, O’Hara rose to prominence in theatre group Second City, where she met Eugene Levy, who became a lifelong collaborator and her
Schitt’s Creek co-star. After cutting her teeth in sketch comedy on
SCTV — for which her writing won an Emmy — O’Hara appeared in television series and TV films. Although her credits were many and varied, the role of Kate McCallister in the
Home Alone films garnered the most attention. O’Hara was also an important ensemble member in several of Christopher Guest’s mockumentaries, including
Waiting for Guffman,
Best in Show and
A Mighty Wind.
Schitt’s Creek, a career-capping triumph, first aired in 2015 and ran for six seasons. Her portrayal of suddenly impoverished former soap opera star Moira, dumped in the middle of rural Canada, earned her a legion of fans, as well as a Golden Globe and two SAG Awards for the role. O’Hara died on January 30 aged 71. — Agencies/Allied Media
