Singer and actress Sally Kellerman has passed away. Perhaps best known for her Oscar-nominated performance as U.S. Army Maj. Margaret “Hot Lips” Houlihan in the originalMAS*Hmovie, Kellerman reportedly died on Thursday at an assisted care facility where she’d been staying in Woodland Hills. Her son, Jack Krane, toldThe Hollywood Reporterthat Kellerman had been battling dementia before her death. She was 84 years old.
One of Kellerman’s most popular roles saw her starring in director Robert Altman’s black comedy war filmMAS*H, released in 1970. This role put Kellerman up for the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress as well as another nomination for a Golden Globe. The role was recast for the TV series adaptation with Loretta Swit who would pick up two Emmys for playing the character.
“BeforeMAS*H, I was ready to take any kind of chance,” Kellerman later recalled of her casting. “I went out for the Lieutenant Dish part, which was bigger. But I happened to be wearing lipstick, and while I was talking a mile a minute, producer Ingo Preminger kept muttering in his German accent, ‘Hot Lips!’ … [Altman] yelled ‘Hot Lips’ too.”
Altman, who Kellerman said accurately predicted that she’d be nominated for an Oscar, would reteam with the actress for other movies over the years. They collaborated on the filmsBrewster McCloud,The Player, andPret-a-Porter. She also appeared in a 1997 episode ofGunthat was executive produced by Altman.
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Sally Kellerman Was Rodney Dangerfield’s Love Interest in Back to School
Another popular role for Sally Kellerman came in the 1986 comedy filmBack to School. She played the college literature professor Diane Turner, the love interest of Rodney Dangerfield’s Thornton Melon. In a 2016 interview on Marc Maron’s “WTF” podcast, Kellerman said how a compliment she’d received from the film’s director, Alan Metter, was one of her biggest career brags.
“This is my one brag in life: The director said he felt that I helped make Rodney human, believable in a relationship. Because I just had to love him and be sincere about it,” Kellerman said. Kellerman also noted how in addition to having fans recognize her as “Hot Lips” fromMAS*Hin public, she’d just as often hear other fans quote herBack to Schoolline, “Call me sometime when you got no class.”
Kellerman is also known for appearing in a memorableStar Trekepisode, “Where No Man Has Gone Before,” portraying Dr. Elizabeth Dehner, a human Starfleet officer; she sacrifices herself to save Captain Kirk (William Shatner). From 2014-2016, Kellerman also had a recurring role onThe Young and the Restlesswhich earned her an Emmy nomination for Best Actress.
With singing serving as another love, Kellerman pursued a musical career as well. She released her first album,Roll With the Feelin', in 1972. She also dated Grand Funk Railroad’s Mark Farner during that time, and the group’s 1976 song “Sally” was written specifically about her. Kellerman released a second album, simply titledSally, in 2009.
Kellerman was previously married to writer-director Rick Edelstein (Starsky & Hutch) in 1970, but the pair were divorced in 1972. She later married producer Jonathan D. Krane (Look Who’s Talking,Face/Off), who passed away in 2016 at the age of 64. Kellerman and Krane had adopted twins, Hannah and Jack; Hannah also died in 2016 at 27 just two months after her adoptive father.
At this time, our thoughts go out to Kellerman’s family, friends, and fans feeling the pain of her loss. May sherest in peaceas her memory lives on forever.
