( CNN ) -- Jeanne Cooper , who played Katherine Chancellor , the `` Dame of Genoa City , '' on `` The Young and the Restless , '' has died . She was 84 . Her death was confirmed by her son , actor Corbin Bernsen , on his Twitter account . `` Mom passed this morning , '' Bernsen posted . `` She was in peace and without fear . '' Cooper had been suffering from an undisclosed illness . The cause of death was not given . Cooper was already a well-established TV actress when she took the role of Chancellor in 1973 . `` The Young and the Restless '' was struggling in the ratings and its creator , William J . Bell , wanted to spice things up . `` Jeanne was the matriarch of the show in every sense of the word , '' said Lauralee Bell , Christine/Cricket on `` The Young and the Restless '' and William Bell 's daughter . `` When you did work you were proud of , you 'd hope for approval or a 'good job ' from Jeanne as a child would from a parent . When things got too tense , she 'd break the tension with her amazing wit . She would teach the younger actors without ever talking down to them . In fact , she would raise them up , '' said Bell . `` She always had my back and my parents ( and our whole family ) always had hers . '' Kate Linder , another member of `` The Young and the Restless '' cast , said Cooper was her `` mentor and an amazing actress and friend . '' Linder , Esther Valentine on the show , said , `` When Jeanne welcomed you into her life , you knew it and it was a fantastic feeling . This is truly the end of an era , not just for fans of 'The Young and the Restless ' but for all of the people she touched throughout her long and distinguished career and life . '' Cooper 's character was colorful from the beginning : a drunk conducting a series of affairs with younger men , as well as one with the best friend of her husband , the wealthy Gary Reynolds . The character was an immediate hit and Cooper -- who had signed a three-year contract -- stayed on . Cooper was instrumental in another storyline 10 years later . In the early '80s the actress decided to undergo a face lift , so the show 's producers had Chancellor get a face lift as well -- it was performed on-screen . Chancellor was also part of a famed soap opera feud , in her case with Jill Abbott Fenmore ( played since 1987 by Jess Walton ) . At one point the two believed they were mother and daughter ; at another , the relationship warmed when Chancellor had a breast cancer scare . The two later became rivals again . And Chancellor also found herself victim of many classic soap opera twists : conniving suitors , long-lost relatives , multiple marriages and memory lapses . Cooper enjoyed all the twists and turns . `` I never wanted to be a movie star , '' she said in an interview , according to Entertainment Weekly . `` I always wanted to be an actress , one of the best . And I am . '' Cooper also appeared in episodes of `` Perry Mason , '' `` The Man from U.N.C.L.E . '' and `` The Twilight Zone . '' Cooper married television producer Harry Bernsen Jr. in 1954 . The pair divorced in 1977. Cooper is survived by three children , all actors : Corbin , Collin and Caren . People we lost in 2013 : The lives they lived .
Corbin Bernsen played Katherine Chancellor on 'The Young and the Restless ' played role for 1977 . Actress is mother of actor Katherine . `` She was in peace and without fear , '' Corbin Bernsen tweeted .