Karen McCluskey

Karen McCluskey
Kathryn Joosten as Karen McCluskey
Portrayed by	Kathryn Joosten
Duration	2005–12
First appearance	"Love Is in the Air" 1x14, February 13, 2005
Last appearance	"Finishing the Hat" 8x23, May 13, 2012
Created by	Marc Cherry
Profile
Other names	Karen Simonds (maiden name)
Occupation	Former Housewife Babysitter
Residence	4358 Wisteria Lane in Fairview, Eagle State 4347 Wisteria Lane in Fairview, Eagle State - briefly in season 4 right after tornado until she rebuilt her own house
Siblings Roberta Simonds (sister) Gale Simonds (sister) Spouse Gilbert McCluskey (husband; deceased) Roy Bender (widower) Children Unnamed son (with Gilbert; deceased)

Karen McCluskey (née Simonds) was a fictional character from the ABC television series Desperate Housewives. The role was played by Kathryn Joosten, who won the Primetime Emmy Award twice for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series in 2005 and 2008. In the series finale, Karen succumbs to cancer. This was agreed upon between Marc Cherry and Kathryn, as she was battling cancer in real life, as well. Kathryn Joosten died 23 days after the series finale aired.

Karen Simonds was born in 1943, quickly wed and gave birth to a son in the 1960s. In season six she reveals to Robin Gallagher that she was in the sex trade business, and modeled for Sears Roebuck, which put her through college. She was the second wife to Gilbert McCluskey, who neglected to update his pension files leaving all of his assets to his first wife, to whom he was only very briefly married. For this reason Karen kept his body in a freezer in her basement. She has two sisters: Gale and Roberta and is married to Roy Bender, portrayed by Orson Bean. Throughout the entire show, she is referred to mainly as Mrs. McCluskey rather than Karen.

Karen McCluskey is introduced in the series as a neighborhood nemesis of Lynette Scavo. In the season one episode Live Alone and Like It (episode 19) we learn that she suffers from severe arthritis and how Lynette helped her when she collapsed soon after they became good friends. Known as the bickering old woman of the neighborhood, Mrs. McCluskey can be constantly known for bickering and causing ruckus. However, deep down Mrs. McCluskey is a really good woman full of love. It was revealed that she had a son that died at age twelve. She offered to babysit the Scavo kids only to be sent home because Lynette found her to be 'ancient'.