Melinda Dillon, the two-time Academy Award nominee who starred in “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” and “A Christmas Story,” died on Jan. 9. She was 83.
The actress’ obituary noted that “fond memories and expressions of sympathy” for the Dillon family could be shared on the website for the Neptune Society’s Long Beach location.
A representative for the Dillon family did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Melinda Dillon, the two-time Academy Award nominee who starred in “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” and “A Christmas Story,” died on Jan. 9. She was 83.
(Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM))
Dillon earned a best supporting actress Oscar nomination for her role in Steven Spielberg’s classic 1977 science fiction film “Close Encounters of the Third Kind.” She played Jillian Guiler, a single mother who desperately searched for her son after he was abducted by aliens.
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“Melinda was generous of spirit and lent such kindness to the character she played in ‘Close Encounters of the Third Kind’… We will all miss her,” Spielberg said in a statement to Variety.
The Arkansas native also received a best supporting actress Oscar nomination for playing Teresa Perrone in Sydney Pollack’s 1981 neo-noir thriller “Absence of Malice.” Her character Teresa Perrone, a lifelong friend of lead Michael Gallagher (Paul Newman), becomes distraught after her abortion is revealed in a newspaper.
Dillon earned a best supporting actress Oscar nomination for her role in Steven Spielberg’s classic 1977 science fiction film “Close Encounters of the Third Kind.”
(Sunset Boulevard/Corbis via Getty Images)
Dillon was nominated for the New Star of the Year award at the Golden Globes after making her acting debut in Hal Asby’s 1976 film “Bound for Glory.”
In one of her most well-known roles, Dillon played Ralphie’s mother Mrs. Parker in the beloved 1983…
