The Emmy-winning actress Kirstie Alley, best known for her iconic role in “Cheers” and lead in “Veronica’s Closet,” has passed away at the age of 71.
On Monday night, her official Twitter account announced the news of her death to the world.
“We are sad to inform you that our incredible, fierce and loving mother has passed away after a battle with cancer, only recently discovered. She was surrounded by her closest family and fought with great strength, leaving us with a certainty of her never-ending joy of living and whatever adventures lie ahead. As iconic as she was on screen, she was an even more amazing mother and grandmother,” posted her children.
In their statement, the family also expressed gratitude to the “incredible team” at Moffitt Cancer Center.
— Kirstie Alley (@kirstiealley) December 6, 2022
“Our mother’s zest and passion for life, her children, grandchildren and her many animals, not to mention her eternal joy of creating, were unparalleled and leave us inspired to live life to the fullest just as she did,” the announcement added.
“We thank you for your love and prayers and ask that you respect our privacy at this difficult time.”
John Travolta honored his friend and former movie co-star on Instagram with a heartfelt tribute.
“Kirstie was one of the most special relationships I’ve ever had,” he wrote on Instagram. “I love you Kirstie. I know we will see each other again.”
Some of the other stars honoring her on social media include comedian Adam Carolla, who wrote that he “felt lucky” to know her, and “Hot in Cleveland” alum Valerie Bertinelli, who tweeted simply, “Oh Kirstie … Rest in Peace.”
“Whether you agreed with her or not, Kirstie Alley was an undeniable talent who brought joy to many – through the screen and with her warm, hilarious spirit,” said comic Jackée Harry. “RIP, luv. You were one of a kind.”
Alley garnered widespread acclaim for her Depiction of Rebecca Howe, the seductive bar manager in the NBC comedy “Cheers.” Alley’s fantastic portrayal opposite Ted Danson earned her an Emmy in 1991 for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series- For which she was nominated five times. Additionally, she won a Golden Globe for the role.
After starring in the James Burrows and Glen and Les Charles-created series that shot her to fame, she once joked about it being a “boys club.”
Alley laughed as she 1993 told the Los Angeles Times that, “Cheers’ is a dictatorship.” “It is a boys’ club and they dictate what the girls do and that is the way you do it. There are no conferences about what your character is or should be. It makes people go unconscious. They just tell you what your character is doing in the script, period.”
Throughout her more-than 40 year career, she took on numerous film roles. Some of these films include “Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan” (1982) and “Look Who’s Talking” (1989). In “Look Who’s Talking”, Hopper not only starred alongside Travolta, Bruce Willis, Olympia Dukakis, and George Segal–but she portrayed a single mom who was driven by her career. “Look Who’s Talking” was so successful that it spawned a 1990 sequel, “Look Who’s Talking Too,” as well as a 1993 entry, “Look Who’s Talking Now.”
In 1994, she won an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Special for her role in the CBS drama “David’s Mother.”
Alley acted in many television sitcoms focusing on comedy, some of which include “The Goldbergs,” “The Middle,” “Hot in Cleveland,” Dharma & Greg,” and more.
Alley played a number of controversial or “imperfect” characters over the course of her career, which she later referred to as “self-deprecating.”
“It’s not necessarily intentional. … I like playing a loser. I like playing someone who can’t redeem themselves easily,” she stated. “For me, I guess, it’s self-deprecating, and that works best for me. The more of a loser I play, I think actually, probably the better I am. It’s hard to play a comedy winner.”
In 2005, she had a role in the Showtime comedy “Fat Actress,” and in 2010, starred in her own reality show called “Kirstie Alley’s Big Life.” The show followed Alley as she battled with weight loss. Alley spoke to Oprah Winfrey in an interview, discussing a time when she confronted her ongoing issues after a parking valet assumed she was pregnant and asked when she was due.
“I just said, ’11 weeks!’ … It hasn’t been really painful, but I think the hardest part is that I spent most of my life thin, you know? [Now] it’s an effort to get dressed, whereas before I would just go, ‘Ooh, I look good in these jeans.'”
The always-outspoken actress also suggested that her weight might have an effect on potential hookups.
“Well, I don’t want to have fat sex, you know,” Kirstie said. “I’ve been celibate for four-and-a-half years because I think I’ve become like a born-again virgin. It’s by choice. Even when [I was thinner], I wondered what I looked like when I’m walking in [the room]. I was sort of inhibited. Now, I know what I look like, and I just can’t see some guy’s eyes going, ‘Oh, my God!'”
Alley’s weight gain wasn’t the only thing that caught her attention.
Alley was a Scientology follower for many years and is good friends with A-listers Travolta, Tom Cruise, and Elizabeth Moss. However, she received negative feedback from the public for supporting Donald Trump in both 2016 and 2020 elections and spoke out against his long Twitter suspension.
Alley also criticized Oscar diversity standards as a “disgrace” in 2020.
Alley was not married when she passed away, but she had been hitched twice before: first with “The Hardy Boys” actor Parker Stevenson from 1983 to 1997, and then with her high school sweetheart Bob Alley from 1970 to 1977.
She also confessed to having developed an emotional attachment to Patrick Swayze, her co-star in the 1985 miniseries “North and South” before she met Stevenson.
“We did not have an affair,” she said in 2012. “But again, I think what I did was worse. Because I think when you fall in love with someone when you’re married, you jeopardize your own marriage and their marriage. It’s doubly bad.”
In 2018, she also suggested that Travolta’s presence was a significant factor in her decision to appear in the film.
“I almost ran off and married John. I did love him, I still love him,” she said on “Celebrity Big Brother UK.” “If I hadn’t been married, I would have gone and married him. And I would have been in an airplane because he has his own! Let me tell you, girls. It doesn’t seem like it’s important if someone has a private jet, but it is. As you get older, you’re not going to want to hang out in airports.”
Alley was born in Wichita, Kansas. She “escapes” from small-town America to Hollywood with the help of cocaine.
“The truth of how I escaped Kansas is being high. I was drugged out of my mind on cocaine, and I got in the car, and I left to go to California,” she said in a 2015 interview. “If I hadn’t been drugged out, I would never have been able to realize my dream. It sounds so stupid but to extricate myself from Wichita, Kansas, really took some doing.”
Alley, who has also done reality competitions including “Dancing with the Stars,” “Celebrity Big Brother” and “The Masked Singer,” said that it might be easier to become a star now because of reality shows.
“With reality shows, and things like that on TV now, people probably feel a little more hopeful that they could make something of themselves,” she said. “But at that time, 30 years ago, it was just like, ‘How could I possibly dare to think that I could go be a star? How could I possibly think that?’ That’s more of a Midwest thing, you’re sort of humbled, and if you’re not humbled people will humble you, like, ‘Well, who the hell do you think you are to move to California and be a star? I mean, come on, Kirstie.'”
In 2021, Alley sold her California home for $7.8 million; she had purchased the Los Feliz property in 2000.
Her children, William True Stevenson and Lillie Price Stevenson, as well as a grandson survive her.