Iconic actress Melinda Dillion will always be remembered as Ralphie's mom in A Christmas Story

Cheryl E Preston

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Melinda Dillion in A Christmas Story with Peter Billingsley and Darrin McGavin.Photo byTBS Youtube screenshot

Melinda Dillion has passed away

WDBJ7 is reporting that Melinda Dillon, who earned Oscar nominations for her roles in Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Absence of Malice, has passed away at 83. She was best known for portraying Ralphie Parker's (Peter Billingsley) mom in the original A Christmas Story, in 1983 and retired in 2007. Fans were disappointed she did not come out of retirement to reprise her role in A Christmas Story Christmas which premiered on Netflix this past December.

A public obituary, indicates the actress died on Jan. 9, but no further details are available. Dillon had a career that spanned five-decade in Hollywood with film roles including Harry and the Hendersons; Slap Shot; The Prince of Tides; To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar; How to Make an American Quilt; and Magnolia. On TV, she appeared in Tracy Takes On..., Judging Amy, The Twilight Zone; The Jeffersons; and Bonanza."

A Christmas Story will always have fond memories

Dillion's shining moment came when she portrayed: "Mother Parker" in A Christmas Story where she expressed a tough-as-nails persona when she had Ralphie put a bar of soap in his mouth after he was cursing and showed herself a loving mother when she smoothed things over with his dad "The Old Man" (Darrin McGavin) when Ralphie beat up the kid that had bee bullying him.

A Christmas Story continues to be a favorite during the holidays and runs 24 hours straight on Christmas Eve and fans will remember the actress fondly. Melinda Dillon was married to Richard Libertini from 1963-1978 and they had one son together..

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# Melinda Dillon# A Christmas Story# Close Encounters of the third

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