Melinda Dillon dead at 83: Beloved actress famed for role in A Christmas Story dies as tributes for movie star pour in

ACCORDING to her family, movie star Melinda Dillon died on January 9, 2023.

She was best known for her roles in the holiday classic, A Christmas Story and in the sci-fi drama Close Encounters of the Third Kind.

Melinda Dillon played several iconic mothers throughout her career

2

Melinda Dillon played several iconic mothers throughout her careerCredit: Getty

Who was Melinda Dillon?

Melinda Dillon was born in Hope, Arkansas, on October 13, 1939.

She grew up on Army bases in Arkansas, Germany, and Chicago before graduating high school.

After graduation, she got a gig working as a coat check girl at Second City, an infamous comedy club in Chicago.

She got a taste for acting when she stepped in to play a role in a skit while working for the club.

First Renault driver ever to win an F1 GP Jean-Pierre Jabouille dies aged 80
Southern Charm star Olivia Flowers’ brother Conner dead at 32

What roles was Melinda Dillon best known for?

By 1963, she had moved to New York City with dreams of achieving greatness in the theatre.

She did just that when she was nominated for a Tony award after her breakthrough Broadway role as Honey in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

After succeeding on the stage, Melinda took her talents to Los Angeles, where she acted as Ralphie Parker’s mother in A Christmas Story.

She delivered the now-infamous line: “You’ll shoot your eye out!” to Ralphie as he begs for a BB gun.

She also co-starred in Steven Spielberg’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind, in which she plays a mother obsessed with making contact with aliens after extraterrestrial beings kidnap her son.

Melinda Dillon was known for her ability to adapt to various roles

2

Melinda Dillon was known for her ability to adapt to various rolesCredit: Getty

What was Melinda Dillon’s net worth?

According to Celebrity Net Worth, Melinda Dillon had a net worth of around $3million when she died.

The online publication GIANT FREAKIN ROBOT spoke with members of Melinda’s family, who said that they were following her wishes of being cremated and then spread in the Pacific Ocean.

There is currently no funeral planned, and no cause of death has been confirmed.

Melinda Dillon is survived by her son, Richard Libertini Jr, whom she had through her marriage to fellow actor Richard Libertini.

While the two divorced in 1978, they remained cordial, with Melinda confirming to the press that her ex-husband had died of cancer in 2016.

!function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s){if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?
n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;
n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version=’2.0′;n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;
t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window,
document,’script’,’
fbq(‘init’, ‘752905198150451’);
fbq(‘track’, “PageView”);

You May Also Like

Luis Scola Net Worth

What Is Luis Scola’s Net Worth? Luis Scola is an Argentine retired…

ANTM viral star Tiffany Richardson’s son Chadrick, 21, shot and killed at Florida GameStop in ‘robbery gone wrong’

America’s Next Top Model star Tiffany Richardson, who fought with host Tyra…

Who Are The 10 Richest Families in the World?

The world’s wealthiest families sit atop fortunes so large that they can…

How The Vanderbilts Went From The Richest Family In The World To Mostly Broke In Just A Few Generations

Before there was a Bezos, a Musk, or a Walton, there was…