Kelly Jean Van Dyke (June 5, 1958 – November 17, 1991) was an American actress and adult film performer. She was the daughter of actor

Jerry Van Dyke Jerry McCord Van Dyke (July 27, 1931 – January 5, 2018) was an American actor and comedian. He was the younger brother of Dick Van Dyke. Van Dyke had a long and successful career mostly as a character actor in supporting and guest roles on pop ...

, niece of the actor Dick Van Dyke, and first cousin once removed of

Shane Van Dyke Shane Van Dyke (born August 28, 1979) is an American actor, screenwriter, film director, television writer, and film producer. He is the son of Barry Van Dyke and grandson of Dick Van Dyke. Early life Van Dyke was born in Los Angeles, California ...

. As an actress, she was known for such television programs as ''

My Mother the Car ''My Mother the Car'' is an American fantasy comedy that aired for a single season on NBC between September 14, 1965 and April 5, 1966. Thirty episodes were produced by United Artists Television. The premise features a man whose deceased mothe ...

''.

Personal life

In May 1991, Kelly married actor

Jack Nance Marvin John Nance (December 21, 1943 – December 30, 1996), known professionally as Jack Nance, was an American actor. A longtime collaborator of filmmaker David Lynch, Nance portrayed the lead in Lynch's directorial film debut ''Eraserhead'' (1 ...

. They had met in rehab, as both had struggled with drug and alcohol addictions. Kelly was also "trying to shed nefarious connections to the porn industry in which she had dabbled under the name Nancee Kelley."

Death

Kelly Van Dyke-Nance committed suicide on November 17, 1991. Her husband, Jack Nance was in

Bass Lake, California Bass Lake is a census-designated place in Madera County, California, United States. It is located southeast of Yosemite Forks, at an elevation of . The population was 575 at the 2020 census. Bass Lake is situated in the Sierra National Forest ...

, filming ''

Meatballs 4 ''Meatballs 4'' (also known as ''Meatballs 4: To the Rescue'') is a 1992 comedy film and the fourth and final installment in the '' Meatballs'' series of films. It was shot in its entirety at Bass Lake, California, starting in the late summer of 1 ...

'' at the time. Van Dyke had relapsed and had resumed making pornography in order to fund her addictions. During a phone call with Van Dyke, Nance told her he wanted to end their marriage as he could not watch her "destroy herself." Van Dyke then "told him she was going to kill herself if he hung up on her. Moments later the storm took out the line and the phone went dead." Subsequently, it took over 45 minutes for Nance and director Bobby Logan to find a working phone. After reaching the nearest town's sheriff office, an officer contacted Los Angeles police. They broke in, finding that the 33-year-old Van Dyke had hanged herself.

References

External links

* * 1958 births People from Danville, Illinois American pornographic film actresses American television actresses Suicides by hanging in California 20th-century American actresses Kelly Jean Actresses from Illinois 1991 suicides {{US-actor-stub