Janis Paige, 'Always Auntie V,' Dies at 101

Janis Paige, the versatile actress and singer who performed with Fred Astaire, toured with Bob Hope, and starred on Broadway and TV, died on Sunday at 101.

Paige, discovered at the Hollywood Canteen in the 1940s, danced with Astaire and toured with Hope, and later racked up more than 100 acting credits, including recurring roles on Eight Is Enough and All in the Family.

Paige was also a hit on Broadway, replacing Angela Lansbury in Mame and performing as the title character for close to two years.

In 1954, Paige landed the role of Babe in the Broadway musical The Pajama Game, which led to her stardom.

Paige toured as a singer, performing with Hope's USO United States Oil Fund LP shows and having regular gigs in New York, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas.

While headlining at the Cocoanut Grove nightclub in Los Angeles, Paige was offered a starring role in the 1957 Fred Astaire musical Silk Stockings.

Paige appeared in various musicals, including Annie Get Your Gun, Applause, Sweet Charity, Gypsy: A Musical Fable, and Guys and Dolls.

She replaced Angela Lansbury in the musical Mame on Broadway, performing as the title character for close to two years.

Her second regularly scheduled primetime TV series was opposite Art Carney in the crime drama Lanigan's Rabbi.

In the 1980s and 1990s, Paige had an ongoing role on the daytime soap operas General Hospital and Santa Barbara.

Paige's final TV spot was in a 2001 episode of the drama Family Law.

She is survived by her daughter, Stephanie, and her grandson, Jason.