Actress Anne Meara, Mother of Ben Stiller, Dead at 85

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Actress and comedian Anne Meara has passed away. She was 85.

Husband Jerry Stiller and son Ben Stiller said Meara died on Saturday, May 23. They did not provide any further details, but did provide a statement to The Associated Press.

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"The two were married for 61 years and worked together almost as long," the statement said of Meara and her relationship with Stiller, who was also described as Meara's "husband and partner in life."



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Meara was born in Brooklyn on September 20, 1929. She met Stiller in 1953 -- when she was 23, he was 25 and both were out-of-work actors -- and the two wed a few months later. Their daughter Amy Stiller was born in 1961, and Ben was born in 1965.

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The native New Yorker was best known for being in the comedy duo Stiller and Meara with her husband, as well as for her work on All My Children, Archie Bunker's Place and Awakenings.

Three days after she passed, Ben shared a photo of his mom on Instagram. "She was an extraordinary person," he wrote. "Miss her."

Family friends and celebs have also taken to social media to pay their respects to Meara:

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