THE death of Kirstie Alley, the Emmy-winning actress best known for her roles in TV sitcom Cheers and the Look Who's Talking movies with John Travolta, shocked Hollywood early this week.
Her family said that she died from cancer that was “only recently discovered.” Alley was 71.
“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,“ her children, True and Lillie Parker, said in a statement.
“As iconic as she was on screen, she was an even more amazing mother and grandmother.”
Travolta was quick to comment that “Kirstie was one of the most special relationships” he has had.
“I love you Kirstie. I know we will see each other again,” he wrote on Instagram.
Tributes also came from others that she worked with, such as Jamie Lee Curtis who co-starred with her on Scream Queens.
“She was a great comic foil in Scream Queens and a beautiful mama bear in her very real life. She helped me buy onesies for my family that year for Christmas,“ Curtis recalled.
Steve Guttenberg, who starred opposite Alley in It Takes Two, praised her generosity and soulfulness.
One of Alley’s co-stars on Cheers, Ted Danson had just rewatched an old episode of the series while on a plane.
“Her ability to play a woman on the verge of a nervous breakdown was both moving and hysterically funny. She made me laugh 30 years ago when she shot that scene, and she made me laugh today just as hard. As I got off the plane, I heard that Kirstie had died. I am so sad and so grateful for all the times she made me laugh,” Danson said in a statement.
