Marla Adams, Longtime ‘The Young and the Restless’ Actor, Dies at 85

By Jack Dunn

Marla Adams, who played Dina Abbott Mergeron on CBS’ “The Young and the Restless” for 37 years, died Thursday in Los Angeles, Matt Kane, director of media and talent for “The Young and the Restless” announced. She was 85.

Adams began her career in the daytime drama genre in 1968 on “The Secret Storm.” She played Belle Clemens on the show until 1974, and would go on to join “The Young and the Restless” in 1982. She would be cast as the Abbott family matriarch Dina Abbott Mergeron, who came to Genoa City to reconnect with her estranged family. She was the onscreen mother to the Abbott siblings, Ashley Abbott (Eileen Davidson), Traci Abbott (Beth Maitland) and Jack Abbott (Peter Bergman).

She would appear in “Y&R” on and off throughout the following years, returning full time in 2017. It would be revealed that her character was suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, and in 2021, Adams won a Daytime Emmy Award for this storyline.

“On behalf of the entire company of ‘The Young and the Restless,’ we send our deepest sympathies to Marla’s family,” Josh Griffith, producer and head writer on “Y&R” said in an official statement. “We’re so grateful and in awe of Marla’s incredible performance as Dina Mergeron as both Marla and Dina made an unforgettable mark on ‘Y&R.’”

Adams would appear in more than 40 productions throughout her career, including “The Bold and the Beautiful,” “Days of our Lives,” “The Golden Girls,” “Hart to Hart,” “The Love Boat” and the feature film “Beneath the Leaves.”

Adams is survived by her children Pam Oates and Gunnar Garat, her grandchildren and her great-grandson.