R.I.P. Marj Dusay, soap actress and the alien who stole Spock's brain

The actress gave us the iconic line "Brain and brain—what is brain?!"

Marj Dusay, a familiar character on soap operas and a frequent guest star on many classic TV shows, passed away on January 28, 2020. 

One of Dusay's most iconic roles was that of Kara in the third-season Star Trek episode, "Spock's Brain." It's one of the most well-known episodes in the fandom, if not the most infamous. We think it's actually pretty charming— read our defense of "Spock's Brain" here.

Dusay delivers one of the most classic lines of original Trek: "Brain and brain— what is brain?!"

Dusay might be best known for her longrunning role in the soap opera Guiding Light as Alexandra Spaulding. Dusay played the character on and off from 1993 until the finale of the show in 2009. 

She portrayed three different femmes fatales on the show Hogan's Heroes and appeared as Blair Warner's mother on The Facts of Life. Other guest-starring appearances include Hawaii Five-O, Mannix, Barnaby Jones, Bonanza and more.

Another notable role was in The Odd Couple episode "What Does a Naked Lady Say To You?" Dusay was the titular naked lady in that 1971 tale.

The actress was 83 years old.

Lisa Whelchel, who played Blair on Facts of Life, memorialized Dusay on her instagram

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12 Comments

jacko3 27 months ago
A most beautiful woman, enjoyed her acting and recall her in that great Hogan Heroes' series ..... GOD Bless Marj Dusay for Eternity ~ Amen - Alleluia!
jacko3 54 months ago
WOW ... a beautiful gal .. being a Hogan junkie .. remember her stylish acting parts ... times claims so many things ... Blessings of the LORD ....
STTOS 54 months ago
Always thought she was absolutely beautiful (her and Sabrina Scharf, love the dark hair). Whether it was Star Trek, Hogan's Heroes or The Odd Couple. R.I.P.
Andy 57 months ago
She later stepped in for Carolyn Jones on the soap "Capitol" during the 80s. RIP.
MaryMitch 57 months ago
She has a web site - you can hear the clip from Spock's Brain here:
http://www.marjdusay.com/soundvideo.html
BrittReid 57 months ago
Always a hottie on Hogan's Heroes and Wild Wild West.
Deb 57 months ago
When she played Alexandra Spaulding on Guiding Light, she had a performance one day that just blew me away so I wrote her a fan letter (first time I ever wrote a fan letter to an actress) and to my great surprise, she wrote me back a very lovely letter in her own hand. She was quite a lady and quite an actress. May she rest in peace and never be forgotten.
Pacificsun Deb 57 months ago
What a very nice memory! Class act all the way. And very beautiful!!
MarkSpeck 58 months ago
In the Hawaii Five-O episode "The Singapore File" (her second of two appearances on that series), she played one of the few women that Steve McGarrett almost gets lucky with.
BillKunkle 58 months ago
She put in a stellar performance as Gregory Peck's wife in 1977 MacArthur
cperrynaples 58 months ago
I'll always remember Marj Dusay as Pamela Capwell on Santa Barbara! Her wicked sense of humor fit in perfectly with the show. Sadly, she was a victim of bad writers who turned her character into a psycho!
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