Rest In Peace, Legends

In the last week, four singular talents departed this earthly—exceedingly hellish—plane.

By Audra Heinrichs  |  July 15, 2024 | 10:30am
Photos: Getty Images CelebritiesDirt Bag
Rest In Peace, Legends

It’s only on exceptional occasions that Dirt Bag isn’t reserved for the most ridiculous rumors in Hollywood. Today is one of those days as the public continues to mourn the tremendous loss of four singular stars.

On Thursday, Shelley Duvall, the unforgettable actor best known for her role in Stanley Kubrick‘s The Shining and beloved for her children’s television programming like Faerie Tale Theatre and Bedtime Stories, passed away of diabetes complications in her sleep at 75. Though she led a more private life in her native Texas in recent years, scores of her peers paid tribute to the actor after her death made news.

“Very sorry Shelly Duvall has passed,” Stephen King wrote on Twitter. “Wonderful, talented, underused actor.”

“Very very sad to hear that the unique and truly wonderful actor Shelley Duvall has died,” Mia Farrow wrote. “She leaves us many unforgettable performances. She was SO good-and always mesmerizing.”

To echo what Roger Ebert wrote of Duvall in 1980: She looked and sounded “like almost nobody else.”

One day after Duvall’s passing, Dr. Ruth Westheimer, died in her home surrounded by her family at the age of 96. The legendary sex therapist, who rose to fame with a sex radio show in the early 1980s, talked exclusively about what used to be largely considered taboo and simultaneously educated—and amused—the masses. Early in her career, Westheimer, who survived the Holocaust, worked at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Harlem, where she recorded 2,000 women’s histories surrounding contraception and abortion as research to write her dissertation at Columbia University, the Wall Street Journal reported.

May we never forget Dr. Westheimer’s—who described herself as a “bit of a square“—catchphrase, which was, quite simply, “get some.”

On Saturday, Richard Simmons, the recently reclusive fitness guru affectionately known as “The Weight Saint,” passed away in his home just one day after his 76th birthday. In recent years, he’d retreated from the spotlight but his legacy of helping people in need—especially psychologically—remained steadfast. In May, Simmons told TMZ that he was returning hundreds of fan emails and making 15 to 20 calls to struggling fans every single day.

That same month, Simmons excitedly shared that he wanted to develop an interactive Broadway show about his life. “I am so excited about the prospect of my own Broadway show,” Simmons wrote online. “I have so many ideas and I’m writing them all down…Broadway is in my blood!”

If that wasn’t all heartbreaking enough, it was announced on Sunday that Shannen Doherty died after nearly a decade of fighting against breast cancer.

“The devoted daughter, sister, aunt and friend was surrounded by her loved ones as well as her dog, Bowie,” Doherty’s longtime publicist, Leslie Sloane, shared in a statement. “The family asks for their privacy at this time so they can grieve in peace.”

At 53 years old, Doherty had a successful career as a child star and went on to become one of the biggest stars of the nineties and early aughts thanks to 90210 and Charmed. In recent years, she hosted a podcast called, Let’s Be Clear, where she frankly discussed her diagnosis, among other difficult topics. Tributes from her co-stars and friends like Rose McGowan and Jennie Garth have since permeated social media.

“Shannen Doherty had the heart of a lion. Passion for craft is often mislabeled as trouble. Shannen was passion,” McGowan wrote on Instagram. “I met her in the 90s and was awed. Getting to really know her later in life, a beautiful gift. This woman fought to live.”

“I am still processing my tremendous grief over the loss of my long time friend Shannen, the woman I have often described as one of the strongest people I have ever known, Garth wrote in her own post. “Our connection was real and honest. We were so often pitted against each other but none of that reflected the truth of our real relationship which was one built on mutual respect and admiration. She was courageous, passionate, determined and very loving and generous. I will miss her and will always honor her deeply in my heart and in my memories.”

May all four rest forever in peace.

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