Marilyn Burns, born Mary Lynn Ann Burns on May 7, 1949, in Erie, Pennsylvania, grew up in Houston, Texas. She pursued a degree in Drama at the University of Texas at Austin, graduating with a Bachelor's degree.
Marilyn earned the nickname "scream queen" for her iconic role in The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974),where she portrayed Sally Hardesty, a teenager who ventures to a cemetery with friends to investigate reports of grave vandalism, only to encounter an insane and murderous family, including the notorious Leatherface.
Her subsequent appearance was in Eaten Alive (1976),where she played a vacationer who unwittingly stumbles upon a hotel managed by a maniac who feeds his guests to his crocodile. Marilyn solidified her scream queen status by starring in other horror movies, including Kiss Daddy Goodbye (1981) and Future-Kill (1985).
Marilyn also made a notable appearance in the television miniseries Helter Skelter (1976),based on the real-life trial of Charles Manson and his family. She portrayed Linda Kasabian, a member of the Manson Family whose testimony helped lead to the convictions of the cult leader and his followers.
In addition to her film and television work, Marilyn made uncredited cameos in Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation (1994) and Texas Chainsaw (2013). However, aside from these roles and occasional appearances at horror conventions, she lived a relatively quiet life out of the spotlight in the Houston area in her later years.
Tragically, Marilyn Burns passed away at the age of 65 on August 5, 2014, in her sleep, with the cause of death reportedly an apparent heart attack, although the exact cause was not specified.
