amanwithaview Remembering Adrienne Shelly...Actress, Writer, and Director

Remembering a GREAT actress...  (From: fandor.com)

Having Andy Griffith passing away today reminded me of his director in the film Waitress.  MANY of you may not know the story of the woman behind that film, her career, as well as her murder.  It still saddens me, as she was a favorite actress of mine growing up.  Her indie film career was HUGE, and she was just coming into her own in HW when she was found dead, hanging in her bathroom from the shower.

Her film career was expansive, as you can see from her IMDB profile here:

Read about her past projects here. You may have seen quite a few!  (From: IMDB)

I have, literally, seen ALL of the films that she has performed in.  My favorites are Revolution #9, Trust, Sleep With Me, and (of course) Waitress.  She had an innocence about her that completely contradicted with many of the characters that she played, and that is why they worked for her SO well.  Complexity often makes the characters all the more interesting, and she was very talented at creating these people.  And, that's why it's so sad.

Shelly was working in her office, and there was construction going on in the building on the same floor.  She had complained, and one day complained again to one of the workers.  Later, she was discovered dead, hanging from her shower.  It was immediately considered suicide.  That is until the police discovered footprints in the bathtub that did not match her own.

Loooong story short, I was so shocked to hear when the construction worker was arrested for murdering her.  This was the same person that Shelly had complained to about the noise.  In response, he had strangled her to death, and then hung her to make it look like suicide.  Seriously, a sad, sad end for a talented woman that had so much ahead of her.  Let alone the fact that she was married, and recently had a child.

I hope that you all will find an appreciation for her work, and take the time to watch (or watch it again) Waitress and remember both Adrienne AND Mr. Griffith.  They are both going to be missed by the public and those who have worked with them in HW, I am sure.

Read the following article (which I originally read as the news was JUST breaking) regarding Adrienne's murder:

Shelly murdered in 2006, shortly after the success of her debut as a film director  (From: NY Times)