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Mary Lynn Ann Burns (born July 5, 1955), better known as Marilyn Burns, is an American actress, perhaps best known for her role in The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974). Burns was born in Erie, Pennsylvania, and raised in Houston, Texas. She always had an interest in the arts. During seventh grade, she appeared in a musical production of A Midsummer Night`s Dream. In 1970, she made her first film appearance in the Robert Altman movie Brewster McCloud. While attending the University of Texas at Austin, Burns joined its film commission board. She graduated from there with a degree in Drama in 1971.

In The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (directed by Tobe Hooper), Burns played Sally Hardesty, a teenager who travels (along with her brother and some friends) to the cemetery where her grandfather is buried to investigate reports of grave vandalism. After the success of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, she appeared in Hooper`s film Eaten Alive. In 1976, Burns had a role in the television mini-series Helter Skelter, about the real-life trial of Charles Manson and several others. In the series, she played Linda Kasabian, a member of the Manson Family who was granted immunity in exchange for her testimony against the defendants. Burns had a few roles in the 1980s (Kiss Daddy Goodbye, Future Kill) and had an uncredited cameo in Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation (1994), which was her last film appearance as of 2009. She currently lives in Texas and is active in community theatre.