Melinda Dillon, who earned Oscar nominations for her dramatic roles in Steven Spielberg’s 1977 sci-fi traditional Close Encounters of the Third Kind and within the Paul Newman journalism drama Absence of Malice, however was maybe finest identified for taking part in Ralphie’s mom within the unique A Christmas Story, has died at 83.
According to a public obituary, she died Jan. 9, though no additional particulars got.
Throughout her five-decade profession in Hollywood, Dillon additionally performed roles within the motion pictures Harry and the Hendersons; Slap Shot; The Prince of Tides; To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar; How to Make an American Quilt; and Magnolia. On TV, she appeared in Tracy Takes On…, Judging Amy, The Twilight Zone; The Jeffersons; and Bonanza.
The future film mom was born in Hope, Ark., although she spent her early years in Alabama, Germany and, as an October 1962 story in New York’s Daily News put it, “wherever the Army sent her stepfather.” She went on to work at the well-known Second City improv group, throughout its early years, earlier than making a go of it on the stage in a extra dramatic undertaking. She performed the a part of Honey within the 1962, unique Broadway manufacturing of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, for which she acquired a Ton Award nomination for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play. She was simply 23.
Fourteen years later, she performed two completely different roles within the Woody (*83*) biopic Bound for Glory, for which she acquired a Golden Globe nomination within the class of Best Female Debut. Spielberg got here calling after that for Close Encounters, the place Dillon earned a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination for taking part in single mom Jillian Guiler whose son is kidnapped by aliens. She earned a second supporting-actress nomination 4 years later, in 1981, for Malice, which additionally co-starred Sally Field.
The beloved A Christmas Story got here out in 1983. In it, Dillon was a tricky however loving mom, who each made her son put a bar of cleaning soap in his mouth when he swore and, when he beat up his bully, helped easy issues over together with his intimidating father. The film continues to be a vacation favourite and airs 24 hours straight on cable starting Christmas Eve.
Dillon stopped performing in 2007 —she final appeared within the Canadian household drama Heartland — so she didn’t reprise her function in final yr’s A Christmas Story sequel, A Christmas Story Christmas. Her function was performed by Julie Hagerty. Billingsley revealed to Entertainment Weekly in December that “Melinda, as you say, has retired from acting and wished us the best in our pursuits. I had spoken to her about this.”
Off-screen, Dillon was married to Richard Libertini for 15 years, earlier than they divorced within the late ’70s. They shared a son.
After information of her demise broke on Friday, she was mourned by some well-known friends.
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