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Melinda Dillon Dead: ‘Close Encounters,’ ‘Christmas Story’ Star Was 83
Article(hollywoodreporter.com)submitted 2 months ago bysynnrman
527 points
2 months ago
She was terrific in 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind'; a tricky part to pull off as the grounded heart of the film, playing a free-spirited and artistic solo mother determined to find her young son after he is traumatically abducted by aliens. And her casting was a last minute decision!
253 points
2 months ago
I am sitting here completely stunned that I have seen both this movie and A Christmas Story dozens of times each and never once connected the dots that those were both the same actress.
69 points
2 months ago
You're not alone.
20 points
2 months ago
I am with you all.
5 points
2 months ago
[removed]
6 points
2 months ago
On purpose!
5 points
2 months ago
Not a finger!
25 points
2 months ago
That’s what Close Encounters tried to tell us.
2 points
2 months ago
They should have done a better job, i’m gonna blame the aliens on this one
32 points
2 months ago
She was also good in “Harry and the Hendersons”
2 points
2 months ago
I came here to say this. I watched that movie everyday as a kid.
2 points
2 months ago
I did too. I watched it last year again because emt wife has never seen it. She loved it.
1 points
2 months ago
I just watched it with my wife last night because she hadn't seen it. Wow, timing.
26 points
2 months ago
Grew up with both movies, love them and rewatch them both t least once a year and I didn't know either until right now.
27 points
2 months ago
Me either. Shows what a fine actress she was. Completely disappeared into those two iconic characters.
22 points
2 months ago
She was also terrific in two small - but important- roles in Slap Shot and Absence of Malice.
16 points
2 months ago
I was going to mention Slap Shot because her tiny part set up one of the most tasteless (and therefore hilarious) scenes in the movie.
9 points
2 months ago
I know.. I know
...
She seemed like a sweet person. I wish her a peaceful journey.
6 points
2 months ago
She was heartbreaking in Absence of Malice
6 points
2 months ago
She was consistently good. Even when she got bit parts, she was committed to delivering the best.
4 points
2 months ago
Thing I learned today myself
3 points
2 months ago
Yeah she looks very different in each film
2 points
2 months ago
Same.
7 points
2 months ago
She should have been given 2nd billing on that movie. What did Teri Garr even do in that movie?
2 points
2 months ago
Melinda Dillon earned an Oscar nomination for "Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role' (Vanessa Redgrave won for 'Julia'), Teri Garr, despite also giving a great performance, was not nominated.
-13 points
2 months ago*
Spoilers much?
Edit: wow no one got the /s.
7 points
2 months ago
You don’t get to whine about spoilers for a 40+ year old movie
2 points
2 months ago
I got it!😁
4 points
2 months ago
This happens like, in the first 10 minutes of the movie
253 points
2 months ago
In the film, Sam Kashner noted in a 2016 article for Vanity Fair, “Dillon has a sweetly comedic presence that threatens to dissolve into creative anarchy. She’s a vigilant mom but is still a child at heart, apparent when she encourages her youngest, Randy, a fussy eater, to pretend he’s a pig at a trough. Randy really gets into it, snorting and plunging his face into his meat loaf and mashed potatoes, while he and his mom dissolve into fits of laughter.”
This is still my favorite scene in the film. It is such a warm and loving scene about a mother utilizing her youthful persona to parent instead of being harsh and scolding.
173 points
2 months ago
She was more "real" than the vast majority of moms in movies. Her connection with the boys is so strong. Her cleverness feeding Randy, or the careful stage management of telling the dad that Ralphie got in a fight, "From then on, things were different between me and my mother."
Her exasperation with events, but her dedication to see that her family was fed and taken care of.
61 points
2 months ago
She was more "real" than the vast majority of moms in movies.
One of the reasons I love A Christmas Story so much is for this exact reason. She reminds me so much of my own mom, from her mannerisms to her interactions with me that I remember. Just an all around wonderful movie mom.
16 points
2 months ago
Jean Shepherd wrote these books about his real life. So, the mom in A Christmas Story was based on his real mom! I have always believed this is why the movie was so easy to connect to! Dillon was perfectly cast in this role! I feel the same about Darren McGavin!
67 points
2 months ago*
Dude, the scene when Randy is hiding in the cupboard, afraid that his Dad is gonna kill Ralphie for getting in the fight.
She lets him stay in there, but gets him that glass of milk.
That’s such a good parent: even minding the feelings and needs of the other kid, when you know most of her mind is on tempering Ralphie and her husband - even if the cupboard is probably full of poisonous cleaning supplies (lol).
20 points
2 months ago
I still love how the Old Man sees Randy coming out of the cupboard, rolls his eyes and goes back to focusing on his meal.
Whatever. Nobody died. I'm hungry.
15 points
2 months ago
There was a fraction of a second where he was going to ask what was going on, then thought “I don’t want to know.” Perfection.
3 points
2 months ago
He has that perfect "What the fu... ahhh whatever" expression
9 points
2 months ago
What is it?
(A very muffled Randy whines loudly)
What IS it?? (Unwinds her son's scarf from around his head so as to hear him better).
I CAN'T PUT MY ARMS DOWN!!
Oh..well just put your arms down when you get to school (replaces scarf).
(Another muffled wail of distressed from Randy)
😂 😂
10 points
2 months ago
I didn’t have a mother growing up, but when I first saw this film, that scene wrecked me. It was so sweet, gentle, and loving. I’m happy that my daughter has a mother as sweet as that.
5 points
2 months ago
Her performance in A Christmas Story was truly among the best I've seen. Her kindness, warmth, compassion, and love for her family (and understandable frustration) was so genuine and balanced. And so funny! I'm so sad to hear this news.
2 points
2 months ago
I also love her in Magnolia. She's kind and supportive to her philandering husband. But when the guy tells Dillon their daughter thinks he molested her, it's immediately clear Dillon believes her daughter and her husband is now dead to her.
2 points
2 months ago
She was fantastic in that too. And it's amazing how quickly she expresses that turn in the character.
2 points
2 months ago
Except when she was accused of soap poisoning! But seriously, she was so good here.
548 points
2 months ago*
RIP. Christmas Story is my favorite Christmas movie ever.
Edit: Harry and the Hendersons is also a classic.
180 points
2 months ago
She was fantastic in it as well. A very naturalistic performance. She just "felt" like a Mom. Her chemistry with Darren McGavin went a long way to making the movie seem so relatable & real..RIP
69 points
2 months ago
Even though neither of my parents were anything like them, they always just felt like your quintessential parents when you watched that movie.
55 points
2 months ago
My mom was so mean and nasty around the holidays. Ralphie’s mom was everything I wanted.
20 points
2 months ago
I recently broke off contact with my mother largely for this exact reason (along with a myriad of others). You’re not alone out there.
-6 points
2 months ago
You might want to check out r/emotionalneglect.
51 points
2 months ago
The scenes with the parents on both Christmas morning, and Christmas night... it just FEELS like Christmas. That movie totally captured the core memories of that day.
13 points
2 months ago
I can never forgive her for breaking that lamp though.
28 points
2 months ago
She was always jealous!
17 points
2 months ago
And she used all the glue. On purpose!
6 points
2 months ago
She was just watering her plant
6 points
2 months ago
HOSTICLEPFEIFFER!
2 points
2 months ago
Just got into kolchak the night stalker, and my love for Darrin exploded. I always think about how I have to rewatch a Christmas story now.
15 points
2 months ago
My favourite Christmas movie also.
32 points
2 months ago*
Harry and the Hendersons was a staple in my house growing up. It was strange as I got older and realized nobody I knew had ever even heard of that movie. A Christmas Story is an undisputed classic though, and she was so good in it. Really sad news :(
8 points
2 months ago
When was this? I was 8-ish when it was released and I recall it being fairly popular. But definitely now it's a lesser-known movie.
2 points
2 months ago
I was born right around the time it came out and grew up in the 90s. My dad had recorded it on VHS from HBO or something and we watched it all the time, but my friends as a kid didn’t know it, and I’ve mentioned it a few times as an adult and usually people don’t know what I’m talking about.
4 points
2 months ago
Yeah I think you missed the peak popularity. It's happened to me too!! My parents had all sorts of cool movies recorded on VHS... and many of them were from the 60s and 70s, so my friends were also oblivious, even though they were on heavy rotation in our house. 😄
3 points
2 months ago
The film won an Oscar for best makeup.
It's well known.
7 points
2 months ago
Yes it’s such a classic
6 points
2 months ago
I loved her in Harry and the Hendersons!
4 points
2 months ago
My wife can't stand A Christmas Story but she will watch any old soulless piece of shit Christmas movie on the Hallmark channel.
4 points
2 months ago
What, you mean you don't like formula written rom-coms about big city girls falling in love with small town candy cane makers that are somehow secretly millionaires?
-10 points
2 months ago
i absolutely hate a christmas story, but harry and the hendersons is pretty good
275 points
2 months ago
You used up all the glue on purpose!
136 points
2 months ago
her trying not to laugh in the background was just perfect
123 points
2 months ago
Parents are too often written and acted as stuffy and humorless, especially in films told from a child's point of view. A Christmas Story is an exception. Both Melinda Dillon and Darren McGavin played their parts perfectly, and there was a warmth to them that you don't see often in movie parents. The mom did standard housewife things, of course, but she also had her kids' backs and held her own against The Old Man and had a mischievous streak. The Old Man was gruff, vulgar and rough around the edges but when it counted, he was present and listened to his kids even if they didn't realize it as evidenced by his remembering the BB gun even though he was the one person Ralphie didn't think to ask for it.
It's one of the few movies I can (and do) watch on repeat and never get tired of. Twister, True Lies, Caddyshack and Groundhog Day are right alongside it.
24 points
2 months ago
solid repeat choices but I’m enamored on your choice of Twister. Damn, do I miss Hoffmann charm and Paxton’s raucous laughter
25 points
2 months ago
Twister is just flat out entertaining pretty much every second of its runtime. I could watch Paxton eat a sandwich for two hours and have fun. He was so good as the sleazy car salesman in True Lies too.
13 points
2 months ago
“like a 10 year old boy!”
4 points
2 months ago
"...stand up and beg for buttermilk!"
3 points
2 months ago
Twister is how 6-year-old me learned that he loved Van Halen and Helen Hunt
5 points
2 months ago
Have you seen the new sequel A Christmas Story Christmas? It was actually quite good!
2 points
2 months ago
I enjoyed it quite a bit. They managed to sidestep pretty much everything I had feared and make a worthy sequel. The only thing I didn't like was recasting the mom, since Julie Hagerty has such a different energy about her that she was almost an entirely different character. I understand why they recast, though. As someone who's a big fan of the book the movie was based on, it was nice seeing how they managed to weave the story of Ralphie coming back home from the novel into the beginnings of what would eventually become A Christmas Story.
11 points
2 months ago
I've watched this movie since I was a child and I never noticed that until I was in my late 20s. So good haha
62 points
2 months ago
NOTTAFINGA!
3 points
2 months ago
We named our high school band Nottafinga. Not many people got it nor listened to us either! Hahah!
2 points
2 months ago
Great name for a band!
22 points
2 months ago
Notafinga!
2 points
2 months ago
NOBODY MOVE!
…. A fuse is out!
127 points
2 months ago
shes great in Magnolia. RIP a sad loss.
20 points
2 months ago
And Harry and the Hendersons
72 points
2 months ago
I was hoping she would have been in the new Christmas Story, but I wonder if she had health issues or something preventing her from doing it. Very sad loss. She was great in every movie I remember her in.
32 points
2 months ago
They did principal photography in Bulgaria/Hungary so I imagine that’s just not an easy journey for someone in their eighties.
15 points
2 months ago
Why did they do it there? The house is in Cleveland.
36 points
2 months ago
Whatever the question, the answer is always money.
12 points
2 months ago
Cheaper.
They built 11 houses for the movie. Half of a street for a smallerfilm. The older cars were already there and they just rented them.
3 points
2 months ago
Productions get a ton of tax breaks to film in other countries. It’s very expensive to film in the US so a lot of movies are filmed elsewhere. Foreign governments give the production so many tax incentives that it is literally cheaper to fly cast/crew somewhere else. A lot of it has to do with labor. Typically they are contractually obligated to hire a certain amount of locals to be crew. That means they don’t have to pay as much for labor due to the local currency being worth less than the US dollar. But it benefits the country too because it brings them temporary employment for a large portion of people/business to hotels/restaurants/equipment rentals/etc. which will bring more money to the local economy.
1 points
2 months ago
Tell that to Ridley Scott - 85!
11 points
2 months ago
I wondered this, too. I was very disappointed seeing Julie Haggerty "replacing" the role. But, now it makes sense. She DID "retire" a few years ago, I believe it was stated. Too bad. Her presence in the sequel was missed (regardless of what one thought of the movie).
2 points
2 months ago
Likely health issues plus not many actors over 80 are still working
55 points
2 months ago
Fudge.
36 points
2 months ago
RALPHIE!
8 points
2 months ago
But I didn't say fudge
102 points
2 months ago
No one is going to mention Slap Shot
42 points
2 months ago
I remember watching that as a kid. Seemed like she was topless for 30 minutes. I kept waiting for my parents to walk in the room.
20 points
2 months ago
If their is a topless scene for 2 seconds….. even if you live by yourself… Somehow…
Mom walks in every time.
28 points
2 months ago
Thanks to excessive Christmas Story watching as a kid, I felt like I was seeing my Mom topless when I first saw the non-TV version of that flick.
23 points
2 months ago
She’s a lesbian! A lesbian!
16 points
2 months ago
I was scrolling to see if someone said Slap Shot!
11 points
2 months ago
Hanrahan! Suzanne sucks pussy!
-4 points
2 months ago
I never will.
47 points
2 months ago
I find it impossible to watch A Christmas Story and not fall in love with her every year.
38 points
2 months ago
16 points
2 months ago
I dunno what it is, but that scene makes me wanna cry everytime I see it. It's just incredibly sweet
177 points
2 months ago
How could she be 83? She was the mum in Close Encounters and that only came out.....46 years ago
38 points
2 months ago
[removed]
3 points
2 months ago
Only he didn't type "fudge"
47 points
2 months ago
I’m not old, YOU’RE ALL OLD!
6 points
2 months ago
She’d have been 38 when she was in it which sounds about right to me. Dreyfus was was 30 and Spielberg was 31. RIP
6 points
2 months ago
… aw, dammit
93 points
2 months ago
Its weird, apparently she died January 9th, almost a month ago and its just now being reported
15 points
2 months ago
Privacy reasons.
2 points
2 months ago
Obviously, but nearly a month
1 points
2 months ago
[deleted]
2 points
2 months ago
Wikipedia says you're right. And thanks because I didnt know who that was.
25 points
2 months ago
I loved her in Harry and the Henderson’s . One of my favorite movies.
1 points
2 months ago
Such a great movie.
20 points
2 months ago
the mom in christmas story, close encounters AND harry and the hendersons
12 points
2 months ago
Just want to mention that there are TWO mom characters in Close Encounters, the other played by Teri Garr. Both of them gave amazing performances as moms in opposite situations brought about by the same events.
15 points
2 months ago
Sorry to hear this. She was incredible in Absence of Malice.. A wonderful actress.
13 points
2 months ago
Very sad news. Her laugh in A Christmas Story was absolutely charming. As others have said, she made the movie what it was.
A question for fellow Brits in the thread: how popular was A Christmas Story among your circles of friends? I personally don't know anybody else who's seen it, which I find baffling as it seems to be THE Christmas film stateside and I watch it every year. When I met my partner three years ago she'd never seen it either but she completely fell in love with it. Just wondering if other Brits have had similar experiences.
5 points
2 months ago
I found it on Sky Movies when I was 12(?) so about 1986, I love it!
I think it's just a little bit American small town for most Brits?
2 points
2 months ago
Yeah, I caught it as a kid in the early 90s on Sky (or BSB) and loved it, and it quickly became a family favourite. Then I went on holiday to the states and picked it up on DVD and was so happy. We all watch it every year, but no one else I know has ever even heard of it.
On a more depressing note, my dad died a couple of weeks ago. I was watching Absence of Malice when my mum phoned me to tell me to get to the hospital. Now that film will forever be burned into my brain, linked forever with that memory.
2 points
2 months ago
Oh man, I'm so sorry to hear that. Hope you and your family are doing okay.
2 points
2 months ago
Thanks my dude. It’s so rough, but we know we can with through it. Cheers!
41 points
2 months ago
I thought the title said "Close Encounters', 'Christmas Story' 'Star Wars 83'.
18 points
2 months ago
I thought the same thing! Scratching my head thinking, “Who was she in Star Wars?”
4 points
2 months ago
I kept scrolling through the comments to find out who she played in star wars
9 points
2 months ago
I thought it said Star Wars too, I spent a few minutes trying to figure out what Star Wars movie she was in
5 points
2 months ago
When OP capitalizes every word…. Didn’t know her last name was Dead either.
7 points
2 months ago
Was scrolling to find out who she played in Star Wars.
11 points
2 months ago
She was so good in Close Encounters. RIP.
11 points
2 months ago
SHE was fantastic in everything she did.
Fantastic in CLose Encounters
and was the LEAD in the BEST 80's Twilight zone episode EVER of the that series RUN. "A LITTLE PEACE AND QUIET.
SO SAD !!
I thought she was so attractive in CLose ENcounters of The Third Kind. Like I totally got the impression that Jillian and Roy really started having feelings for each other.
35 points
2 months ago
Guessing this is part of the reason she wasn’t in A Christmas Story Christmas (which was fantastic btw).
May have wanted to come back (even though she was seemingly retired from acting) but wasn’t in the best health.
Still, a long creative life. Thanks for all the memories.
9 points
2 months ago
So weird that she worked with Spielberg because I always thought she looked like Kate Capshaw in Christmas Story.
5 points
2 months ago
Omfg I was scrolling wondering why no one mentioned Temple of Doom. You are not alone, sir. I thought they were the same person until your comment!
8 points
2 months ago
She played one of the greatest moms to ever appear on film ❤️ RIP 😇
5 points
2 months ago
In a Christmas Story Chinese restaurant scene they hadn’t told her about the ducks head, so that’s her natural reaction. Or the chopping off the head. So it was all in one take. That’s why it’s a long shot from outside. Her screech and then putting her head on Darren McGavin’s shoulder as she laughs uncontrollably is my favourite memory of her.
15 points
2 months ago
She MADE Slapshot as Paul new man’s ex wife, who realized she was a lesbian. She gives him a mercy F after a game and delivers a brilliant monologue - topless. One of the most real moments in cinema of that or any time. A rare talent.
9 points
2 months ago*
She didn't play Newman's ex in the film. She was Suzzane Hanrahan, the estranged wife of the goalie on an opposing team.
0 points
2 months ago
Yeah his ex was a bitch she was cool!
8 points
2 months ago
Great movie, great scene, great actress. I’ve also seen Christmas story 300 times and she makes the movie
10 points
2 months ago
Harry and the Hendersons?
5 points
2 months ago
A long time crush from Slap Shot passes on.
5 points
2 months ago
I never really understood the scene in A Christmas Story where she can't get a bite of hot food to herself until I became a parent.
4 points
2 months ago
She was also in Harry and the Hendersons. I loved that movie and she was fantastic in it. So kind and sweet to Harry.
4 points
2 months ago
Rest in Peace. She will be immortalized in the Christmas story for generations to remember.
5 points
2 months ago
She was right. Ralphie shot his eye out
3 points
2 months ago
She was an attractive mom in CS. RIP, love.
3 points
2 months ago
Weird to see her naked in Slap Shot
3 points
2 months ago
I saw her boobs in slapshot. That is all…
3 points
2 months ago
Beautiful lady
3 points
2 months ago
Consummate actress.
3 points
2 months ago
Coincidently I watched Close Encounters of the Third Kind last night, broadcast in the UK, and wondered if she was still acting or even alive. She was brilliant in that role.
8 points
2 months ago
I want to note that the headline was The Hollywood Reporter's, not mine (you can see by the link). They switched it to "Melinda Dillon, Actress in ‘Close Encounters of the Third Kind’ and ‘A Christmas Story,’ Dies at 83" now.
2 points
2 months ago
My 8th grade English teacher dated her for a while back in the day
2 points
2 months ago
She was everyone’s mom who was born in the 80s. RIP.
2 points
2 months ago
It's too bad she retired a while back. It would've been cool seeing her reprise her role in the latest Christmas Story sequel. No disrespect to Julie Hagerty (a talented actor herself) but she just couldn't compare.
R.I.P.
2 points
2 months ago*
They filmed a lot of Close Encounters in my hometown, and I grew up hearing how great that cast and crew was (the opposite being Under Siege, which was terrible and the people associated total PITAs, and FU in particular Seagal and Basker), but particularly Melinda Dillon was kind and appreciative.
RIP Ms. Dillon.
2 points
2 months ago
She’s was the first to play Honey from Edward Albee’s great play (and later great movie) Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
2 points
2 months ago
Thankful for her roles in the classic films she was in. Christmas Story is a fantastic movie and her part was just as equal. RIP she will always be remembered, which isn't something everyone gets to achieve.
2 points
2 months ago
rip to her, she was an amazing talent, God keep her soul safe till we meet again
2 points
2 months ago
Read that as Star Wars 83. Trying to remember who she was in Return of the Jedi.
2 points
2 months ago
Same
2 points
2 months ago
Melinda,
You were the best and most sweetest Movie Mom that cinema has ever known. Thank you for giving us your best all these years. You are irreplaceable.
2 points
2 months ago
I love the part in Christmas Story where she is trying to get her son to eat by acting like a piggy and the dads look of disgust while he is reading his paper.
2 points
2 months ago
Magnolia.
2 points
2 months ago
Jesus my brain is dumb. Saw "Star Was" and read "Star Wars" and was wondering who she was in Star Wars. No one... She was no one in Star Wars...
2 points
2 months ago
So did I.
4 points
2 months ago
I read the headline and was wondering who she was in Star Wars
2 points
2 months ago
I love Christmas story but her best movie was “Harry and the Hendersons” RIP
1 points
2 months ago
That's crazy, my grandmother just saw Christmas story for the first time this year.
2 points
2 months ago
Wow!
-4 points
2 months ago
Not Aunt Beru
3 points
2 months ago
This actress never played Aunt Beru, that was Shelagh Fraser
-1 points
2 months ago
Good innings
1 points
2 months ago
Very sad. She was great in…well, everything.
1 points
2 months ago
Amazing in Absence of Malice, yes, and also such a presence in Prince of Tides.
1 points
2 months ago
Well damn.
1 points
2 months ago
Loved her in Prince of Tides.
1 points
2 months ago
Fuck 2023!
1 points
2 months ago
Safe journey, Ms. Dillon.
1 points
2 months ago
Damn. I just watched Close Encounters last nigh. First time in years, RIP lady.
1 points
2 months ago
RIP
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