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Jean Smart says she’s recovering from recent heart procedure: ‘Listen to your body’

A woman with short blond hair in a multicolored blouse smiles as part of a TV show
Jean Smart as Deborah Vance in Season 2 of “Hacks” on HBO Max.
(Karen Ballard / HBO Max)
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Jean Smart brought attention to American Heart Month by revealing Thursday that she’s recovering from a recent heart procedure.

The Emmy-winning “Hacks” star said on Instagram that the procedure had been successful and she felt it was “important” to share her condition with her followers.

“I am fortunate to have excellent professional care and support from family and friends while I continue to recuperate,” she wrote. “Please listen to your body and talk to your doctor — I’m very glad I did!”

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“I’m trying not to be jaded,” the actress says. “Once you become jaded, that’s permanent, kind of like losing your virginity.”

In the comments section of her post, fellow actors Kaitlin Olson, Sarah Rafferty and Johnny Sibilly showered Smart with support and love (in the form of red-heart emojis).

Also sharing well wishes for Smart and her recovery were “Hacks” producers HBO Max and Universal TV.

“We are so happy that our beloved Jean Smart’s heart procedure was successful and she’s on the mend,” the companies said in a joint statement shared Thursday with The Times.

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Jean Smart is on track to win another Emmy. ‘Ted Lasso’ could well repeat too.

While Smart takes time to recuperate, some departments involved in the production of “Hacks” Season 3 have taken a pause.

In the HBO Max series, Smart stars as Deborah Vance, a veteran comedian who comes back to the spotlight with the help of young writer Ava Daniels (Hannah Einbinder).

In the past, Smart has opened up about her health. In June 2021, the actor told the New Yorker she was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes as a teenager. She said her condition, and her mother’s desire for her to stay close to home, helped launch her career.

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The veteran actress stretches in opposite extremes for two HBO projects, the comedy ‘Hacks’ and the dramatic murder mystery ‘Mare of Easttown.’

“I got into the University of Washington and thank God I did, because they had a phenomenal theatre program. Washington State had almost no theatre program,” she told the New Yorker. “I don’t know what would have become of me if I had gone to school there. So I have my mother and my diabetes to thank.”

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