Valerie Mahaffey, an actress known for her scene-stealing turns in "Desperate Housewives," and "Northern Exposure," died Friday in Los Angeles after battling cancer, her publicist said in a statement to CBS News. Mahaffey, who won an Emmy for playing Eve the hypochondriac on "Northern Exposure," was 71 years old.

She had memorable roles on TV shows like “Desperate Housewives” and “Northern Exposure,” and in the dark comedy film “French Exit.”

I have lost the love of my life, and America has lost one of its most endearing actresses,” her husband, Joseph Kell, tells Page Six.