Linda Porter, star of NBC’s Superstore, died at the age of 86 Friday following an illness. Her representation confirmed the actress’s death to The Hollywood Reporter. Porter appeared on the ensemble sitcom as Myrtle Vartanian, the sweet, befuddled, sometimes chaotic Cloud 9 sales associate whose firing, rehiring and use as the basis for a holographic in-store greeter made her one of the show’s comedic highlights. Kicking off her on-screen career at the age of 55 in an episode of Beauty and the Beast, Porter’s previous television roles include turns on Gilmore Girls, 2 Broke Girls, The Mindy Project and American Horror Story, among many others.
She also appeared as a gambler, billed as “Lady Slot-Addict,†whose life gets completely turned around by Dale Cooper in David Lynch’s Twin Peaks: The Return. In addition to her small-screen work, the Cleveland-born Porter had roles in films from The Truth About Cats & Dogs to Dude, Where’s My Car? to The House.
“Linda wasn’t just hilarious, she was incredibly sweet, energetic and enthusiastic — working with her brightened everyone’s day,â€Â Superstore executive producers and showrunners Gabe Miller and Jonathan Green said in a statement. “We’re lucky to have been a small part of her long career. The Superstore family won’t be the same without her.†Following word of her death, Porter’s Superstore colleagues took to social media to remember her.