LOS ANGELES (AP) – Actress Florence Stanley, who played the gravelly voiced Bernice Fish on the sitcom “Barney Miller” and in the show’s spinoff series, “Fish,” has died. She was 79.

Stanley died Oct. 3 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center of complications from a stroke, said her husband, Martin Newman.

In “Barney Miller,” which showcased the kooky goings-on at a New York City police precinct, Stanley played the wife of Abe Vigoda’s character, Detective Phil Fish. Vigoda’s character was so popular, a spinoff series called “Fish” was created in 1977, in which the couple adopts five foster children.

Stanley launched her career on the stage before heading to Hollywood. She was in the original Broadway cast of Neil Simon’s “The Prisoner of Second Avenue” in 1971 and was in the Manhattan Theater Club’s 1994 production “What’s Wrong With This Picture?”

Stanley’s other TV appearances include the character of Judge Margaret Wilbur on the late ’80s sitcom “My Two Dads” and guest roles on numerous shows including “Malcolm in the Middle” and “Dharma & Greg.”

On film, Stanley appeared in this year’s “Down With Love” and was the voice of a character in the 2001 animated Disney film “Atlantis: The Lost Empire.”

Born in Chicago, Stanley graduated from Northwestern University.

In addition to her husband, she is survived by two children and two grandchildren.

AP-ES-10-10-03 1041EDT