Guiding Light Actor Lee Lawson Dies at 80

Guiding Light actor Lee Lawson died Sunday at the age of 80. Lawson's daughter, Leslie Bova, shared the news in a Facebook post, saying her mother had both cancer and COVID.

Lawson played Bea Reardon on CBS soap opera Guiding Light from 1981 to 1990. Her first on-screen role came in CBS's Love of Life in 1965. In 1979, she appeared in ABC's One Life to Live before being cast as Guiding Light's Bea, a single mother of seven who owned and operated the 7th Street boarding house. Lawson appeared in 50 episodes of the series, which ended in 2009 after airing for 72 years on the radio and TV. The series is the second longest-running drama in American television history, and the longest-running soap opera of all time.

In addition to her soap opera work, Lawson appeared in TV series including Maude, Kojak, Equal Justice, and Reasonable Doubts.

Lawson is survived by her children, Leslie, Chris, and Gaby, and grandchildren Gianna, Wilder, and Sterling.

Deena ElGenaidi's writing has been featured in Nylon, MTV News, Insider, The AV Club, and more. You can follow her on Twitter @deenaelg.