15 Comments

I love this, this is so beautiful 💛✨

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Lovely tribute, Sheila. I know I’ll be re-reading it to get all the little details you are very adept at weaving in. I’d never seen the promo for Faerie tale theater—we rented every single one they had at our local tiny video store. That was just star-studded goodness right there.

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Thank you Sheila....Shelley was special.

"“Acting isn't difficult. I'd never take lessons. You just do it, you know? Everybody in life acts anyhow. President Nixon, the Pope, even John Lennon.” — Shelley Duvall to Patricia Bosworth, 1971"

Especially John Lennon

paul dionne

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No, not "especially".

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Great of you to mention Faerie Tale Theatre, which I only heard about because it has its own section at Scarecrow Video (and we do Rent-by-Mail, just fyi 😉). This post reminded me that I need to see more Altman films, too. What a lovely tribute, Sheila!

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Thanks, Greg - good to know about Scarecrow! I think some of these are on YouTube - not sure though. I'm happy to know they are available. I think a lot more people need to discover them - it's such an incredible archive! what an amazing project.

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Lovely as ever, Sheila. I want to highlight this: "The pink stuff is the best stuff. The pink stuff is the one thing we all share. How much energy is wasted trying to hide our pink stuff, our flaws, our vulnerabilities, our smarts, our humanity."

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That was wonderful. I loved the example of her dress getting caught in the car door and that having to become a bit done repeatedly in the film. That sort of thing really brings home the challenges of acting. And how she could simply do it.

Maybe the old comment that Brando going to acting class was like sending a tiger to jungle school was as applicable to her as for him.

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Thank you!!

Brando had serious acting technique though. He was trained and had stage experience. He knew how to work. People thought he just rolled in off the street and was totally believable onscreen, but he worked, he had a process. He was a tuning fork for truth and that can't be taught, but he was an experienced actor. Shelley Duvall was quite different. A very different kind of phenomenon.

and yeah the dress caught in the car! It's such a bit - you eventually start waiting for it every time she gets in a car!

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Just when I think I'm beginning to have a handle on what acting is about...

🤣

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It's a good rule of thumb to not compare anyone to Brando. lol He too was one of a kind. But he took a more conventional path, even with his unconventional talent. Brando was on Broadway, off-Broadway, he took classes, he wanted to be a great actor. He moved to New York to be an actor. He was single-minded in his pursuit of acting . Obsessed, even. Duvall was very different. she really didn't give a damn. Everyone imitated Brando - Whereas Duvall was so much herself she really couldn’t be imitated.

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Thank you, Sheila. A beautiful tribute to a TRUE ARTIST. I never knew the story of Robert Altman discovering her. Genius Recognize Genius. NASHVILLE is one of my all time favorite films. Although the first time I went to see it, I walked out. I was young and didn't understand. It was way over my head. Giving it another look on another day, it hit me. Hard. I'm grateful for the body of work created by Shelley Duvall. And happy to have shared a birthday with her and Ringo. Cool Cats Be Cool Cats.

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You definitely need to be GROWN to appreciate Nashville! I'm still discovering things in it. thank you so much for reading and for such a beautiful comment. and yeah I love Altman being like "wtf is this" and then realizing quickly "oh shit this is real"

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Great to read something about film--especially, these days--that skips the superficial and gets to the heart of the matter about everything. Duvall, in the nature of her being, stood for so much that is avoided, hidden, denied, or systematically stomped out--especially, in the totalitarian film business. I knew I would love this piece, sat down to read it immediately, and didn't stop till I was done--like a plant just starved for water. Big thanks to Ms. O'Malley for understanding its value and rendering it so beautifully.

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what a nice validating comment - I truly appreciate it!! she meant so much to so many. she was special. // Duvall, in the nature of her being, stood for so much that is avoided, hidden, denied, or systematically stomped out // << this is so true.

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