"Lenny" Actress Valerie Perrine 1943-2026 Career - Memorial Video

Valerie Ritchie Perrine (September 3, 1943 – March 23, 2026) was an American actress. She was best known for her portrayal of Honey Bruce in the film Lenny (1974). For the role, she won the BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles and the Best Actress Award at the Cannes Film Festival, and she received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress.

In 1968, Perrine worked as a showgirl in "Lido de Paris" at the Stardust Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. After several years in Las Vegas, Perrine moved to Los Angeles. Perrine was photographed nude for a pictorial in the May 1972 issue of Playboy, and she later appeared on the magazine's cover in August 1981. 

She became the first actress to appear nude intentionally on American network television during the May 4, 1973, PBS broadcast of Bruce Jay Friedman's Steambath on Hollywood Television Theater.

Perrine appeared in Slaughterhouse-Five (1972), W.C. Fields and Me (1976), Superman (1978), The Electric Horseman (1979), Can’t Stop the Music (1980), Superman II (1980), and The Border (1982). 

In 1986 starred opposite Harvey Korman in the short-lived CBS sitcom Leo & Liz in Beverly Hills.

Stacey Souther directed and produced Valerie, a 45-minute documentary about Perrine's career and her experience with Parkinson's disease. The film screened at the Edmonton Film Festival in 2020.

On August 8, 1969, hairstylist Jay Sebring invited her to a dinner party with his former girlfriend, actress Sharon Tate, and their friends Abigail Folger and Wojciech Frykowski at the El Coyote Cafe in Los Angeles, but she was unable to attend. Shortly after midnight on August 9, all four were murdered by members of the Manson Family at Tate's home in Benedict Canyon.

Valerie Perrine was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2015. In 2017, she underwent dental surgery to repair teeth damaged by medication used to manage the condition. Perrine died at her home in Beverly Hills on March 23, 2026, at the age of 82.

"Lenny" Actress Valerie Perrine 1943-2026 Portraits - Memorial Video

Valerie Ritchie Perrine (September 3, 1943 – March 23, 2026) was an American actress. She was best known for her portrayal of Honey Bruce in the film Lenny (1974). For the role, she won the BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles and the Best Actress Award at the Cannes Film Festival, and she received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress.

In 1968, Perrine worked as a showgirl in "Lido de Paris" at the Stardust Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. 

After several years in Las Vegas, Perrine moved to Los Angeles. Perrine was photographed nude for a pictorial in the May 1972 issue of Playboy, and she later appeared on the magazine's cover in August 1981. 

She became the first actress to appear nude intentionally on American network television during the May 4, 1973, PBS broadcast of Bruce Jay Friedman's Steambath on Hollywood Television Theater.

Perrine appeared in Slaughterhouse-Five (1972), W.C. Fields and Me (1976), Superman (1978), The Electric Horseman (1979), Can’t Stop the Music (1980), Superman II (1980), and The Border (1982). In 1986 starred opposite Harvey Korman in the short-lived CBS sitcom Leo & Liz in Beverly Hills.

Stacey Souther directed and produced Valerie, a 45-minute documentary about Perrine's career and her experience with Parkinson's disease. The film screened at the Edmonton Film Festival in 2020.

On August 8, 1969, hairstylist Jay Sebring invited her to a dinner party with his former girlfriend, actress Sharon Tate, and their friends Abigail Folger and Wojciech Frykowski at the El Coyote Cafe in Los Angeles, but she was unable to attend. Shortly after midnight on August 9, all four were murdered by members of the Manson Family at Tate's home in Benedict Canyon.

Valerie Perrine was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2015. In 2017, she underwent dental surgery to repair teeth damaged by medication used to manage the condition. Perrine died at her home in Beverly Hills on March 23, 2026, at the age of 82.

"Tender Mercies" Actor Robert Duvall 1931-2026 Career Memorial Video

Robert Selden Duvall (January 5, 1931 – February 15, 2026) was an American actor, filmmaker, and producer, best known for his roles in the later 20th century of Hollywood. Duvall began acting professionally on stage in 1952, performing in summer plays at the Gateway Playhouse in Bellport on Long Island until 1959, with a one-year break serving in the U.S. Army. He made contacts there that then led to a career on television in the 1960s on shows such as The Defenders, Playhouse 90, and Armstrong Circle Theatre. He made his Broadway debut in the play Wait Until Dark in 1966, and, in 1977, he returned from screen acting to the stage in David Mamet's play American Buffalo, earning a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Play nomination.

He made his feature film debut portraying Boo Radley in To Kill a Mockingbird (1962). His other early roles included Bullitt (1968), True Grit (1969), M*A*S*H (1970), THX 1138 (1971) and Tomorrow (1972), the last of which was developed at the Actors Studio and was his personal favorite. 

Duvall won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance as an alcoholic former country music star in Tender Mercies (1983). His other Oscar-nominated roles included The Godfather (1972), Apocalypse Now (1979), The Great Santini (1979), The Apostle (1997), A Civil Action (1998), and The Judge (2014). 

Throughout his career, Duvall also starred in numerous television productions. He won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Limited Series and Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series for the AMC limited series Broken Trail (2006). His other Emmy-nominated roles included the CBS miniseries Lonesome Dove (1989), the HBO film Stalin (1992), and the TNT film The Man Who Captured Eichmann (1996).

With a career spanning seven decades, he received an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, four Golden Globe Awards, two Primetime Emmy Awards, two Volpi Cups for Best Actor, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. He was critically acclaimed for his technical proficiency and chameleon-like ability to assume a convincing role. Vincent Canby dubbed him "the American Olivier" in 1980 and this label stuck.

Death

Duvall died at his farm in Middleburg, Virginia, on February 15, 2026, at the age of 95. His death was announced through a public statement by his wife Luciana Pedraza.

"Tender Mercies" Actor Robert Duvall 1931-2026 Portraits Memorial Video

Robert Selden Duvall (January 5, 1931 – February 15, 2026) was an American actor, filmmaker, and producer, best known for his roles in the later 20th century of Hollywood. Duvall began acting professionally on stage in 1952, performing in summer plays at the Gateway Playhouse in Bellport on Long Island until 1959, with a one-year break serving in the U.S. Army. He made contacts there that then led to a career on television in the 1960s on shows such as The Defenders, Playhouse 90, and Armstrong Circle Theatre. He made his Broadway debut in the play Wait Until Dark in 1966, and, in 1977, he returned from screen acting to the stage in David Mamet's play American Buffalo, earning a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Play nomination.

He made his feature film debut portraying Boo Radley in To Kill a Mockingbird (1962). His other early roles included Bullitt (1968), True Grit (1969), M*A*S*H (1970), THX 1138 (1971) and Tomorrow (1972), the last of which was developed at the Actors Studio and was his personal favorite. Duvall won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance as an alcoholic former country music star in Tender Mercies (1983). His other Oscar-nominated roles included The Godfather (1972), Apocalypse Now (1979), The Great Santini (1979), The Apostle (1997), A Civil Action (1998), and The Judge (2014). Throughout his career, Duvall also starred in numerous television productions. He won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Limited Series and Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series for the AMC limited series Broken Trail (2006). His other Emmy-nominated roles included the CBS miniseries Lonesome Dove (1989), the HBO film Stalin (1992), and the TNT film The Man Who Captured Eichmann (1996).

With a career spanning seven decades, he received an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, four Golden Globe Awards, two Primetime Emmy Awards, two Volpi Cups for Best Actor, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. He was critically acclaimed for his technical proficiency and chameleon-like ability to assume a convincing role. Vincent Canby dubbed him "the American Olivier" in 1980 and this label stuck.

Death

Duvall died at his farm in Middleburg, Virginia, on February 15, 2026, at the age of 95. His death was announced through a public statement by his wife Luciana Pedraza.