Shelley Duvall, 1949 - 2024

July 11, 2024 8:11 AM

Shelley Duvall, Robert Altman Protege and Tormented Wife in ‘The Shining,’ Dies at 75
posted by brundlefly (91 comments total)

I may be the only person in the world to say this, but I loved her in Popeye.
posted by chavenet at 8:14 AM on July 11 [75 favorites]

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Oh no. I love her.
posted by tiny frying pan at 8:15 AM on July 11 [2 favorites]

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posted by Glinn at 8:18 AM on July 11

I'll plan to watch all the way through the Faerie Tale Theatre box set this weekend in her honor.
posted by Greg_Ace at 8:18 AM on July 11 [20 favorites]

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posted by grumpybear69 at 8:18 AM on July 11

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posted by The Bellman at 8:19 AM on July 11

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posted by filtergik at 8:19 AM on July 11

loved her in Popeye
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posted by HearHere at 8:21 AM on July 11 [3 favorites]

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posted by ishmael at 8:21 AM on July 11

Well shit. RIP.

chavenet - you're not alone. She became Olive Oyl. The film itself, however, is less great.
posted by Jessica Savitch's Coke Spoon at 8:22 AM on July 11 [14 favorites]

“Hello, I’m Shelley Duvall”

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posted by Going To Maine at 8:23 AM on July 11 [18 favorites]

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posted by LobsterMitten at 8:25 AM on July 11

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Glad she was here and made such interesting great fun stuff.
posted by winesong at 8:28 AM on July 11 [3 favorites]

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posted by AJaffe at 8:29 AM on July 11

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posted by mygothlaundry at 8:30 AM on July 11

I may be the only person in the world to say this

You're not. She was brilliant as Olive Oyl (and the movie itself is stronger than people remember).

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posted by hanov3r at 8:30 AM on July 11 [14 favorites]

Seeing Faerie Tale Theatre on Free Showtime Weekend stoked my interest in fairy tales. Vale, Shelley.
posted by pxe2000 at 8:32 AM on July 11 [4 favorites]

I first saw her as the title character in Bernice Bobs Her Hair. You rocked, Shelley.
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posted by The Ardship of Cambry at 8:41 AM on July 11 [3 favorites]

I may be the only person in the world to say this, but I loved her in Popeye.
She was brilliant as Olive Oyl

Honestly, I can't imagine anyone else playing Olive Oyl. Ever. Farewell, Shelley Duvall.
posted by briank at 8:42 AM on July 11 [12 favorites]

I love the Popeye movie and she was iconic as Olive Oyl. (Really, everyone in that movie was more or less iconic, but hers was the most perfect castiing.)
posted by seanmpuckett at 8:45 AM on July 11 [9 favorites]

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posted by theora55 at 8:47 AM on July 11

Faerie Tale Theatre and Mother Goose Rock N Rhyme were staples of my childhood. And I would watch Popeye frequently even though I had no idea what was going on. Thanks, Shelley.
posted by downtohisturtles at 8:47 AM on July 11 [1 favorite]

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posted by dr_dank at 8:48 AM on July 11

We adored Shelley in everything that she appeared in, except The Shining, which is the only movie my husband and I ever walked out of a theater on while it was playing. Horrible flick, waste of her talents. Faerie Tale Theater was a long-time fave. She gave us and the rest of the world so much joy. Thank you, Shelley. May you forever rest in peace. ♥
posted by Lynsey at 8:53 AM on July 11 [2 favorites]

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posted by djseafood at 8:57 AM on July 11

Rip. A legnd.
posted by thirdring at 9:01 AM on July 11

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She was one of the first actors I remember being able to identify on sight and appreciate. What an amazing artist she was.
posted by Kattullus at 9:03 AM on July 11 [2 favorites]

"He Needs Me"
posted by mcdoublewide at 9:06 AM on July 11 [11 favorites]

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posted by humbug at 9:08 AM on July 11

"The only word for this is transplendent."
She made everything she was in better.
Nthing her Olive Oyl. I just wish she'd made more movies.
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posted by the sobsister at 9:10 AM on July 11 [3 favorites]

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posted by Mister Moofoo at 9:13 AM on July 11

I think she’s the best thing in The Shining. She’s certainly the only person acting, and Kubrick was, I gather, a total creep to her, but she managed to make what could have been a sad one-note “terrified wife” role compelling. I mean, Nicholson fills up the screen, but he’s mostly mugging for the camera. Duvall is the star.
posted by GenjiandProust at 9:14 AM on July 11 [23 favorites]

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posted by bz at 9:17 AM on July 11

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posted by Silvery Fish at 9:17 AM on July 11

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posted by pt68 at 9:20 AM on July 11

Sad to hear this, she was great in everything she did. Also, fuck THR for using that headline "tormented wife", ugh. While that was true, it's not the entirety of who she was as a person and its gross to just frame it that way for clicks or whatever.

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posted by Fizz at 9:22 AM on July 11 [5 favorites]

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posted by sammyo at 9:28 AM on July 11

He’s large….
posted by funkaspuck at 9:33 AM on July 11 [9 favorites]

>but hers was the most perfect castiing

the Red Letter Media people agreed in their recent thing on Popeye...
posted by torokunai at 9:33 AM on July 11 [2 favorites]

We watched Popeye last week (I had never seen it before) and I thought it was kind of terrible, but Duvall was perfect as Olive Oyl. I remember her as fantastic in Roxanne, which I haven't seen in decades.

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posted by joannemerriam at 9:39 AM on July 11 [7 favorites]

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posted by condour75 at 9:41 AM on July 11

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posted by rhymedirective at 9:47 AM on July 11

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posted by jquinby at 9:51 AM on July 11

Duvall's best acting role was playing the complex and somewhat unlikeable protagonist in Altman's 3 Women. She deserved an Oscar for that one, but wasn't even nominated. Although she did get recognition from Cannes for it.
posted by ovvl at 9:55 AM on July 11 [11 favorites]

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posted by Thorzdad at 9:56 AM on July 11

ovvl, 100% agreed. Millie in 3 Women is EVERYTHING. Annoying and heartbreaking and then the last part.

She was great in Nashville. In Brewster McCloud. Popeye. The Shining. Bernice Bobs Her Hair. A great natural artist who wasn't afraid to put in the work. A human who wasn't afraid.

And I think it speaks volumes that in the last chapter of her life she had a lot of people who were very protective of her despite some others trying to exploit her. Fuck Dr. Phil.

Thanks, Shelley.

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posted by queensissy at 10:03 AM on July 11 [8 favorites]

Very, very sorry to hear that. She embodied something pure and vulnerable and strong and good.
I find myself tearing up at the keyboard.

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posted by ducky l'orange at 10:05 AM on July 11 [2 favorites]

She was a vibrant, funny, and tremendous actress. RIP.
posted by northtwilight at 10:12 AM on July 11 [2 favorites]

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posted by The Great Big Mulp at 10:16 AM on July 11

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The informal portrait of her about 3/4 down the 2021 "Searching for Shelley Duvall, ... article (this one) is lovely.
posted by scruss at 10:35 AM on July 11 [5 favorites]

Been watching McCabe and Mrs. Miller all week, in the way I watch movies now: a few minutes here and a few minutes there. Her character showed up late last night.
posted by Rash at 10:36 AM on July 11 [2 favorites]

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posted by Foosnark at 10:37 AM on July 11

This interview by Seth Abramovich is worth a read. I cried a little bit at the closing paragraph:

At one point during our time together, Duvall shares a childhood memory of Houston’s one and only snow day: “They let school out. Everybody couldn’t wait to get home. We all built snowmen in the front yard. The thing is, by the time we built the snowman, everything else was green again. Because we’d used up all the snow.” The image has stuck with me ever since: that of a wide-eyed little girl from Texas caught up in a rare and magical moment, and using it to build something wonderful for herself, only to look around and realize everything had gone back to how it was, and had always been.

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posted by JustSayNoDawg at 10:38 AM on July 11 [12 favorites]

I loved Shelley Duvall. I had a crush on her since I was five, which peaked when she appeared as a Manic Pixie Nursey Rhyme Protagonist in "Mother Goose Rock N' Rhyme." To this day, I'm not sure an actress has given a better performance than Duvall did in "The Shining," a portrayal so vivid and raw that it took decades before it got its due. It's such a shame that she spent the second half of her life dealing with mental illness, and its accompanying social stigma, but I hope that she came to realize in recent years just how beloved she was (particularly by those of us who grew up on "Faeire Tale Theater")
posted by HunterFelt at 10:40 AM on July 11 [5 favorites]

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posted by May Kasahara at 10:42 AM on July 11

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posted by gentlyepigrams at 10:47 AM on July 11

I remember going to the Astrodome and hearing about the big Brewster McCloud movie being filmed and to this day I've never seen it. Since Shelley; who is one of my favorite actors of all time, is in it… I need to look it up. And I remember the snow day mentioned in the above interview. We had the exact same experience of building snowmen during the one storm in Houston and using up all the snow.

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posted by jabo at 10:53 AM on July 11 [1 favorite]

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posted by Phssthpok at 10:57 AM on July 11

Yeah, for me it was Brewster McCloud where I saw her first and knew she’d be great whatever she was in. I adored the fairy tales and some of her later projects, but I have such fond memories of that first time seeing her. I’ve never seen it again, though, so time for a rewatch.
posted by kitten kaboodle at 11:04 AM on July 11

Duvall's best acting role was playing the complex and somewhat unlikeable protagonist in Altman's 3 Women.

That is such an unforgettable, utterly haunting performance.

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posted by treepour at 11:12 AM on July 11 [3 favorites]

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posted by tommasz at 11:23 AM on July 11

She was such a unique presence, and one I have appreciated more and more over time.

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posted by Phlegmco(tm) at 11:46 AM on July 11 [1 favorite]

to truly understand Altman's Popeye, you have to be familiar with the original E.C. Segar comic strips, as that was the creator's inspiration. and Shelley will ALWAYS be Olive Oyl to me - RIP
posted by jkosmicki at 11:50 AM on July 11 [8 favorites]

She's great in Thieves Like Us too. But then she was great in everything I ever saw her in.
posted by Gerald Bostock at 11:52 AM on July 11 [1 favorite]

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posted by lalochezia at 12:10 PM on July 11

It’s been a few years since I’ve rewatched any of her major works. But I was very recently reminded of how great a performer she was, having watched Bernice Bobs Her Hair on Kanopy, on a whim..

:(

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posted by phonebia at 12:43 PM on July 11 [1 favorite]

She was one of the many wonderful characters in my favourite film “Nashville.”
posted by ThatCanadianGirl at 12:45 PM on July 11 [3 favorites]

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posted by snsranch at 12:48 PM on July 11

Going to Maine:

"Hello, I'm Shelly U-Haul"
posted by hydrophonic at 1:01 PM on July 11 [3 favorites]

Don't forget her as Steve Martin and Daryl Hannah's friend Dixie in Roxanne.

I still love that movie.
posted by Archer25 at 1:59 PM on July 11

Nashville might considerd one of the greatest comedies of all time.
Texas Film Award's. Shelley Duvall clip reel.
posted by clavdivs at 2:15 PM on July 11 [3 favorites]

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posted by jim in austin at 2:31 PM on July 11

to truly understand Altman's Popeye, you have to be familiar with the original E.C. Segar comic strips, as that was the creator's inspiration.

Good point. I'd add that I think the Fleischer Olive Oyl inspired the way Duvall moves throughout the movie.
posted by the sobsister at 2:46 PM on July 11 [3 favorites]

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posted by Faint of Butt at 7:08 PM on July 11

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posted by Mitheral at 7:51 PM on July 11

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posted by Joey Michaels at 8:37 PM on July 11

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posted by YellowSuB at 8:39 PM on July 11

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posted by BrStekker at 11:36 PM on July 11

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posted by Pouteria at 3:36 AM on July 12

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posted by kinnakeet at 3:57 AM on July 12

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One of the greats.
posted by The Manwich Horror at 4:29 AM on July 12

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posted by grubi at 5:59 AM on July 12

Dang! She was always great in every role she had, no matter how good or bad the movie was.

I always loved her small but hilarious part in Annie Hall.
posted by freakazoid at 8:39 AM on July 12

Chavenet: I may be the only person in the world to say this, but I loved her in Popeye.

Nope - she earned my undying respect and adoration for her performance as Olive Oyl. If that was the only movie she ever did, it was enough for me. Never a big of Robin Williams or Duvall - but what they created (Altman and crew, too, obvs) with Popeye was simply magical.
posted by davidmsc at 8:56 AM on July 12 [1 favorite]

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posted by Mutant Lobsters from Riverhead at 2:33 PM on July 12

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posted by Rustic Etruscan at 4:27 PM on July 12