Susan Saint James death: How her 1977 magazine cover reunited her with niece Christa Miller after a family secret came out

Emmy-winning actress Susan Saint James has died at the age of 80 after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. While people might remember her for her memorable roles in McMillan & Wife and Kate & Allie, a magazine cover featuring the actress in 1977 had played a big part in her family’s history, by helping her niece Christa Miller discover a long kept secret about her biological father.

This incident, which had been shared by Saint James and Miller in an interview with People, reveals a lesser-known side of the actress, who built a successful career before stepping away from the spotlight for her family.

How a magazine cover revealed a family secret

When Saint James appeared on the cover of People’s September 12, 1977, issue, her 11-year-old niece was living in Rumson, New Jersey and was completely unaware of her connection with the actress.


Saint James' 11-year-old niece was completely unaware of her connection with the star while living in Rumson, New Jersey. It was when the actress appeared on the cover of People’s September 12, 1977, issue that she found out about it. Miller’s grandmother gave her the magazine and revealed that the Yale-educated surgeon who had raised her was not really her biological father.

Miller’s biological father was Chuck Miller, Saint James’s brother. She was born in New York City to Chuck and model Bonnie Trompeter, but her parents separated when she was two. The paternal family decided that she would grow up without contact with Chuck or knowledge of his identity.

Saint James said she had known Miller as a baby but lost contact with her after her father discouraged communication between the family members. She nevertheless kept track of her niece from a distance, collecting photographs of Miller’s early modelling work.

Miller remembered repeatedly looking through the magazine at photographs of Saint James’s children, Sunshine and Harmony. Her grandmother had told her to keep the discovery private.

A family reunion

Miller met Chuck when she was 16. In 1981, he brought her to Los Angeles to meet Saint James and the rest of the family.

“It was seamless,” Miller told People about meeting her relatives. “I felt like, ‘Oh, this is my family.’ Susan instantly welcomed me and brought sunshine into my life.”

The reunion eventually led to a close relationship between the aunt and niece. Miller made her television debut on Kate & Allie in 1985, joining a show that had become one of the defining projects of Saint James’s career. Chuck and Miller remained close until his death in 2017.

Susan Saint James' television career

Born as Susan Jane Miller in Los Angeles on August 14, 1946, Saint James has started doing modelling work in Paris as a teenager before returning to California to pursue acting. She secured a contract with Universal Studios and made her television debut in the 1966 film Fame Is the Name of the Game.

Her big breakthrough came with The Name of the Game, in which she played Peggy Maxwell, who was a research assistant working alongside three lead characters. Her performance earned her an Emmy Award in 1969.

She also played Sally McMillan, the wife of Rock Hudson’s police commissioner, in McMillan & Wife. The mystery series ran from 1971 to 1976, and Saint James got three Emmy nominations for her role.

After leaving the show due to a contract dispute, she appeared in films including Outlaw Blues (1977) and Love at First Bite (1979). Her next major television success came with Kate & Allie, which ran from 1984 to 1989. She played Kate McArdle, a divorced mother sharing a home with her friend Allie, played by Jane Curtin.