<em>SNL</em> actress Jan Hooks dies aged 57

Los Angeles - Actress Jan Hooks, best known for portraying first ladies Hillary Clinton, Betty Ford and Nancy Reagan on Saturday Night Live in the 1980s, died in New York, the office of her agent Lisa Lieberman said on Thursday. She was 57.

Hooks performed alongside comedians such as Dana Carvey and the late Phil Hartman on NBC's SNL from 1986 until 1991, before joining the cast of CBS sitcom Designing Women.

Her representatives did not give a cause of death.

Hooks had a cameo in 1992's Batman Returns, a recurring role as Vicki Dubcek on NBC's 3rd Rock from the Sun and lent her voice to play Apu's wife Manjula in Fox's hit animated series The Simpsons. Most recently, she played Vera Maroney in NBC's 30 Rock.