Kirstie Louise Alley (January 12, 1951 – December 5, 2022) was an American actress. Her breakout role was as Rebecca Howe in the NBC sitcom ''

Cheers ''Cheers'' is an American sitcom television series that ran on NBC from September 30, 1982, to May 20, 1993, with a total of 275 half-hour episodes across 11 seasons. The show was produced by Charles/Burrows/Charles Productions in association w ...

'' (1987–1993), for which she received an

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

and a

Golden Globe The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of ...

in 1991. From 1997 to 2000, she starred as the lead in the sitcom '' Veronica's Closet'', earning additional Emmy and Golden Globe nominations. On film, she was perhaps best known for her role as Mollie Jensen in '' Look Who's Talking'' (1989) and its two sequels, ''

Look Who's Talking Too ''Look Who's Talking Too'' is a 1990 American romantic comedy film and a sequel to director Amy Heckerling's 1989 comedy ''Look Who's Talking''. The film stars the original cast members John Travolta and Kirstie Alley as James and Mollie Ubriacco, ...

'' (1990) and ''

Look Who's Talking Now ''Look Who's Talking Now'' is a 1993 American romantic comedy film, and the third and final installment in the film series that began with ''Look Who's Talking'' in 1989. It finds John Travolta and Kirstie Alley reprising their roles as James an ...

'' (1993). Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Alley appeared in various films, including '' Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan'' (1982), '' Summer School'' (1987), '' Shoot to Kill'' (1988), '' Madhouse'' (1990), '' Sibling Rivalry'' (1990), '' Village of the Damned'' (1995), '' It Takes Two'' (1995), ''

Deconstructing Harry ''Deconstructing Harry'' is a 1997 American black comedy film written, directed by, and co-starring Woody Allen, alongside Caroline Aaron, Kirstie Alley, Bob Balaban, Richard Benjamin, Eric Bogosian, Billy Crystal, Judy Davis and others. The f ...

'' (1997), '' For Richer or Poorer'' (1997), and '' Drop Dead Gorgeous'' (1999). Alley won her second

in 1994 for the television film ''

David's Mother ''David's Mother'' is a 1994 American made-for-television drama film directed by Robert Allan Ackerman and stars Kirstie Alley as a devoted mother trying to cope with her autistic teenage son David (Michael Goorjian). The film aired on CBS on Apr ...

''. In 1997, Alley received another

Emmy The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

nomination for her work in the crime drama series '' The Last Don''. In 2005, she played a fictionalized version of herself on Showtime's '' Fat Actress''. In 2013, Alley returned to acting with the title role on the sitcom '' Kirstie''. In 2016, she appeared on the Fox comedy horror series '' Scream Queens''. She also appeared in reality television including '' Kirstie Alley's Big Life'' (2010) and served as a contestant on the 12th season of ''

Dancing with the Stars ''Dancing with the Stars'' is the name of various international television series based on the format of the British TV series '' Strictly Come Dancing'', which is distributed by BBC Studios, the commercial arm of the BBC. Currently the form ...

'' (2011–2012), where she finished in second place, behind Hines Ward, and the 22nd series of the British reality show '' Celebrity Big Brother'' (2018), in which she finished as runner-up. In 2022, she appeared on '' The Masked Singer''.

Early life

Alley was born in

Wichita, Kansas Wichita ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Sedgwick County. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 397,532. The Wichita metro area had a population of 647,610 in 2020. It is located in ...

, to Robert Deal Alley, who owned a lumber company, and Lillian Alley. She had two siblings, Colette and Craig. Alley attended Wichita Southeast High School, graduating in 1969. She attended college at

Kansas State University Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant college in 1863 and was the first public inst ...

, dropping out after her sophomore year. After moving to Los Angeles to pursue Scientology and work as an interior designer, Alley appeared as a contestant on the game show '' Match Game'' in 1979. Winning both her games, she went on to win $500 in her first Super Match and $5,500 in her second. She also appeared on the game show '' Password Plus'' in 1980. On both shows, she described her profession as interior designer. In 1981, an automobile accident involving a drunk driver killed her mother and left her father seriously injured.

Career

Alley made her film debut in 1982 in '' Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan'' in the role of the Vulcan Starfleet officer Lieutenant

Saavik Saavik is a fictional character in the ''Star Trek'' universe. She first appeared in the film '' Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan'' (1982) played by Kirstie Alley. Robin Curtis took over the role for '' Star Trek III: The Search for Spock'' (1984) ...

. The Saavik character became very popular with ''Star Trek'' fans, but Alley chose not to reprise the role in the next two film sequels, later stating that she was offered less money than for ''Star Trek II''. Actress

Robin Curtis Robin Curtis (born in New York Mills, New York) is an American actress. She is best known for replacing Kirstie Alley in the role of Vulcan Lieutenant Saavik in the films '' Star Trek III: The Search for Spock'' and '' Star Trek IV: The Voyag ...

succeeded her in the role. She was also a regular on the ABC television series ''

Masquerade Masquerade or Masquerader may refer to: Events * Masquerade ball, a costumed dance event * Masquerade ceremony, a rite or cultural event in many parts of the world, especially the Caribbean and Africa * Masqueraders, the performers in the West ...

'' from 1983 to 1984. In the years following, she starred in a number of smaller films, including '' One More Chance'', '' Blind Date'' and ''

Runaway Runaway, Runaways or Run Away may refer to: Engineering * Runaway reaction, a chemical reaction releasing more heat than what can be removed and becoming uncontrollable * Thermal runaway, self-increase of the reaction rate of an exothermic proc ...

''. In 1985, she starred in the ABC miniseries ''

North and South North and South may refer to: Literature * ''North and South'' (Gaskell novel), an 1854 novel by Elizabeth Gaskell * ''North and South'' (trilogy), a series of novels by John Jakes (1982–1987) ** ''North and South'' (Jakes novel), first novel ...

'', and also portrayed feminist icon

Gloria Steinem Gloria Marie Steinem (; born March 25, 1934) is an American journalist and social-political activist who emerged as a nationally recognized leader of second-wave feminism in the United States in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Steinem was a c ...

in the television movie '' A Bunny's Tale''. In 1987, Alley starred alongside

Mark Harmon Thomas Mark Harmon (born September 2, 1951) is an American actor. He is most famous for playing the lead role of Leroy Jethro Gibbs in '' NCIS''. He also appeared in a wide variety of roles since the early 1970s. After spending the majority of ...

in the comedy film '' Summer School''. The film was a box office success, grossing over $35 million in the United States. Later in 1987, Alley joined the cast of NBC sitcom ''

'', replacing

Shelley Long Shelley Lee Long (born August 23, 1949) is an American actress, singer, and comedian. Long portrayed Diane Chambers on the hit sitcom ''Cheers'' and received five Emmy nominations, winning in 1983 for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Seri ...

. It became her breakout hit role and she remained with the show for six years until its eleventh and final season.Interview with Kirstie Alley, '' The Howard Stern Show'', December 4, 2013. In 1989, Alley starred with

John Travolta John Joseph Travolta (born February 18, 1954) is an American actor. He came to public attention during the 1970s, appearing on the television sitcom '' Welcome Back, Kotter'' (1975–1979) and starring in the box office successes '' Carrie'' ( ...

in '' Look Who's Talking''. The film grossed over $295 million worldwide. They then went on to make two other films centered on the same theme, ''

'' and ''

''. After two

nominations for her work on ''Cheers'', in 1988 and 1990, she won the Emmy on her third nomination, in 1991. Alley earned her second Emmy for the 1994 television film ''

''. For her contributions to the film industry, Alley received a motion pictures star on the

Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a historic landmark which consists of more than 2,700 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, Calif ...

at 7000 Hollywood Boulevard in 1995. From 1997 to 2000, Alley played the title character in the NBC sitcom '' Veronica's Closet'', as well as serving as executive producer on the show. She served as the spokesperson for Pier 1 Imports from 2000 to 2004, and for Jenny Craig from 2004 to 2007.

TV Land TV Land is an American pay television channel owned by Paramount Global through its networks division. Originally a spinoff of Nick at Nite consisting exclusively of classic television shows, the channel now airs a combination of recent and cl ...

aired a sitcom that centered on Alley as a Broadway star and a new parent. It was titled '' Kirstie'', and reunited her with former ''

'' co-star

Rhea Perlman Rhea Jo Perlman (born March 31, 1948) is an American actress. She played head-waitress Carla Tortelli in the sitcom ''Cheers'' (1982–1993). Over the course of 11 seasons, Perlman was nominated for ten Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Ac ...

and '' Seinfeld'' star Michael Richards. The series premiered on December 4, 2013, and ran for one season before it was canceled, five months after ending its freshman run. She was partnered with Maksim Chmerkovskiy on the 15th season of ''Dancing with the Stars'', where she finished in second place. In 2015 Alley was cast in '' Time Crashers'', a reality history program on

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...

. In 2022, Alley competed in season seven of '' The Masked Singer'' as "Baby Mammoth" of Team Cuddly.

Personal life

Alley was married from 1970 to 1977 to high-school sweetheart Bob Alley, who coincidentally had the same name as her father. Alley married actor Parker Stevenson on December 22, 1983. Following a

miscarriage Miscarriage, also known in medical terms as a spontaneous abortion and pregnancy loss, is the death of an embryo or fetus before it is able to survive independently. Miscarriage before 6 weeks of gestation is defined by ESHRE as biochemica ...

, the couple adopted their first child, a son, in October 1992, and in 1995, they adopted their second child, a girl. The marriage ended in 1997. In 2016, Alley became a grandmother through her son. From 2000 until her death in 2022, Alley was a resident of

Clearwater, Florida Clearwater is a city located in Pinellas County, Florida, United States, northwest of Tampa and St. Petersburg. To the west of Clearwater lies the Gulf of Mexico and to the southeast lies Tampa Bay. As of the 2020 census, the city had a popu ...

. From 1991 to 2020, Alley also lived on Islesboro Island, Maine. She once owned the Mitchell Cottage, formerly the Islesboro Inn, with her then husband. Alley later purchased another home on Islesboro.

Body image

On '' The Dr. Oz Show'' on September 17, 2012, Alley said she started gaining weight in late 2003, and that she had been a compulsive eater all her life without gaining weight, only noticing the change after she reached early

menopause Menopause, also known as the climacteric, is the time in women's lives when menstrual periods stop permanently, and they are no longer able to bear children. Menopause usually occurs between the age of 47 and 54. Medical professionals often d ...

in 1992. While working as a Jenny Craig spokesperson from 2004 to 2007, Alley lost , bringing her weight down to . In May 2009, she told ''

People A person ( : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of prope ...

'' magazine that, after parting ways with Jenny Craig, she gained and weighed as much as . In March 2010, after gossip blogger Roger Friedman alleged a link between her Organic Liaison weight-loss system and the Church of Scientology, Alley wrote: "Please Google Mr. Roger Friedman. He is spreading lies about me and my new business. You will see his history & why Fox fired him. Going to have Mr. Attorney call Mr. Friedman's Attorney tomorrow ... Mr. Friedman is treading on thin LIBELOUS ice with my company." In September 2011, Alley announced she had lost using weight loss products from Organic Liaison. In 2012, she faced a

class-action lawsuit A class action, also known as a class-action lawsuit, class suit, or representative action, is a type of lawsuit where one of the parties is a group of people who are represented collectively by a member or members of that group. The class actio ...

alleging

false advertising False advertising is defined as the act of publishing, transmitting, or otherwise publicly circulating an advertisement containing a false claim, or statement, made intentionally (or recklessly) to promote the sale of property, goods, or servic ...

; the suit claimed that her weight loss was the result of exercise, including training for the TV show ''Dancing with the Stars'', not Organic Liaison products. She

settled A settler is a person who has migrated to an area and established a permanent residence there, often to colonize the area. A settler who migrates to an area previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited may be described as a pioneer. Settle ...

the suit in 2013, agreeing to remove the term "Proven Products" from packaging, issue a

disclaimer A disclaimer is generally any statement intended to specify or delimit the scope of rights and obligations that may be exercised and enforced by parties in a legally recognized relationship. In contrast to other terms for legally operative langua ...

on the brand's website that it is a "calorie-based weight-loss product", and pay a $130,000 settlement. In April 2014, she resumed a role as a spokesperson with Jenny Craig; the Organic Liaison product line was acquired by Jenny Craig's

parent company A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own shares of other companies ...

, and subsequently integrated into Jenny Craig's product line. In January 2015, Alley said that, since starting the Jenny Craig weight-loss program again, she had lost .

Scientology

Alley was raised as a

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's ...

, but became a member of the Church of Scientology in 1979. At the time she became a Scientologist, Alley said she had a

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly used recreationally for its euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from the leaves of two Coca species native to South Am ...

addiction and went through Narconon, a Scientology-affiliated drug treatment program, to end her dependency. By 2007 she had attained the level of OT VII ( Operating Thetan Level 7), and by 2018 she was New OT VIII. According to Alley, "Scientology made me a lot stronger and tougher ... It's made me more honest and more willing to take responsibility for other people." In May 2000, she purchased a waterfront mansion from former Scientologist Lisa Marie Presley for $1.5 million. The house is in

, the spiritual headquarters of the Church of Scientology. Alley donated $5 million to the church in 2007. As a member of the Church of Scientology, Alley opted not to, though was never asked to, reprise her role as Rebecca Howe on any episode of '' Frasier'', because the series was centered on the field of medical psychiatrists; she was the only former ''Cheers'' regular not to do so.

Politics

In August 2015, Alley tweeted that she would not be supporting

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...

, the Democratic nominee, during the 2016 presidential elections, and on April 8, 2016, she tweeted her support for Republicans

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...

and

Rudy Giuliani Rudolph William Louis Giuliani (, ; born May 28, 1944) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 107th Mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001. He previously served as the United States Associate Attorney General from 1981 to 19 ...

. On October 8, 2016, Alley retracted her endorsement of Trump, tweeting, "I hate this election and I'm officially no longer endorsing either candidate." In October 2020, she stated she had voted for Trump in 2016 and intended to vote for him again in 2020 because "he's NOT a politician." She also endorsed Republican John James in the

2020 United States Senate election in Michigan The 2020 United States Senate election in Michigan was held on November 3, 2020, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent Michigan. It was held concurrently with the 2020 U.S. presidential election, as well as other electi ...

Death

Alley died from

colon cancer Colorectal cancer (CRC), also known as bowel cancer, colon cancer, or rectal cancer, is the development of cancer from the colon or rectum (parts of the large intestine). Signs and symptoms may include blood in the stool, a change in bowe ...

Moffitt Cancer Center Houston Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute is a nonprofit cancer treatment and research center located in Tampa, Florida. Established in 1981 by the Florida Legislature, the hospital opened in October 1986 on the University of Sout ...

Tampa, Florida Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough ...

, on December 5, 2022, at the age of 71. As per a statement released by her children, the cancer had only been recently discovered. Her ex-husband Parker Stevenson, her two children, ''Look Who's Talking'' co-star John Travolta, and other celebrities posted their condolences on social media. Her ''

'' co-stars

Ted Danson Edward Bridge "Ted" Danson III (born December 29, 1947) is an American actor. He achieved stardom playing the lead character Sam Malone on the NBC sitcom ''Cheers'', for which he received two Primetime Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards. ...

, Kelsey Grammer, and

also released statements memorializing her.

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations

Alley's work has been honored by multiple associations throughout her career. For her role in the sitcom ''

'', she earned four

Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of ...

nominations winning one for Best Actress – Television Series Musical or Comedy in 1991, and five

Primetime Emmy Award The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the Primetime ...

nominations winning one for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in 1991. On November 10, 1995, Alley was given a star on the

for her contributions to motion pictures.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Alley, Kirstie 1951 births 2022 deaths 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses Actors from Wichita, Kansas Actresses from Kansas American film actresses American former Protestants American Scientologists American television actresses Best Musical or Comedy Actress Golden Globe (television) winners California Republicans Contestants on American game shows Former Methodists Kansas State University alumni Outstanding Performance by a Lead Actress in a Comedy Series Primetime Emmy Award winners Outstanding Performance by a Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Movie Primetime Emmy Award winners People from Islesboro, Maine Wichita Southeast High School alumni Deaths from colorectal cancer Deaths from cancer in Florida