The late Jeanne Cooper's son Corbin Bernsen was right when he wrote that her light would continue to shine — CBS is making sure of it. On Friday, May 10, two days after the soap star's passing, the network announced that The Young and the Restless would honor her with a special tribute episode.
According to Deadline, Cooper's family, friends, and costars will gather on the Y&R set to share their personal memories of the late Daytime Emmy-winning actress. The hourlong celebration — set to air on Tuesday, May 28, at 12:30 p.m. ET, 11 a.m. PT — will also feature clips and interviews from the top-rated soap opera's recent 40th anniversary special.
Cooper passed away on May 8 at the age of 84, a few weeks after she was hospitalized with an unspecified illness. Prior to her decline in health this year, she had played Y&R matriarch Katherine Chancellor for nearly four decades. The role earned her 11 Daytime Emmy nominations, including one win for Best Actress in a Drama Series in 2008. She also received a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2004.
Bernsen, one of the veteran actress' three children with ex-husband Harry Bernsen, revealed the news of his mother's death via Facebook in a moving post about her legacy. "She has been a blaze her entire life…And while her light finally gave into the wind that gives flight to all our journeys, there will always be a glimmer left behind by what she stood for," he wrote, later noting that at the moment she died, he was listening to "Everlasting Light" by the Black Keys.
"I will certainly dedicate what remains of my life to continue her purpose of honesty, equality, humility, empathy, and love," he continued. "So many of you have said your prayers for her and right now, today, I can say the best way to honor her is to inhabit your lives with those things she stood for."
