Katherine Short, the eldest child and only daughter of veteran actor and comedian Martin Short, has died at 42.
“It is with profound grief that we confirm the passing of Katherine Hartley Short,” a representative for Short’s family said in a statement. “The Short family is devastated by this loss, and asks for privacy at this time. Katherine was beloved by all and will be remembered for the light and joy she brought into the world.”
TMZ reported Tuesday that officers from the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) found Short’s body on Monday in at her home in the Hollywood Hills around 6:40 p.m. PST.
Short was born on Dec. 3, 1983, and is the eldest of her father and late mother Nancy Dolman’s three children.
Short earned her bachelor’s degree from New York University (NYU) and her master’s degree in social work from University of Southern California (USC). She went on to serve the city of Los Angeles as a social worker, and worked with mental health-centered nonprofit organization Bring Change To Mind.
This is the latest tragedy for the Short family, following the death of actress and comedienne Catherine O’Hara, to whom he paid tribute in January. Dolman died in August 2010 after suffering from ovarian cancer.
Two years after her death, Short shared with The Guardian that he and his children were still in mourning.
“It’s been a tough two years for my children,” Short explained at the time. “This is the thing of life that we live in denial about, that it will ever happen to us or our loved ones, and when it does you gain a little and you suffer a little. There’s no big surprise.”
Short is survived by her father and two brothers, Oliver and Henry.
