A celebrated character actress of stage, film and TV, Heckart's disarming laugh, almost gangly frame and large eyes have lent themselves to the portrayal of overbearing mothers, career women, villainous dames, and a host of sympathetic, beloved parts. Perhaps best remembered for her Broadway and film portrayal of Mrs. Daigle, the bereaved mother of Patty McCormack's first victim in "The Bad Seed" (1956), her Broadway and film portrayal of Mrs. Baker, the mother with overbearing concern for her blind son in the Broadway and film versions of "Butterflies Are Free" (1973) and her several appearances as Mary's "Aunt Flo" on "The Mary Tyler Moore Show."