Valerie Perrine, Oscar-nominated Lenny and Superman actor who narrowly avoided Manson tragedy, dies aged 82 – UK Times

Valerie Perrine, the Oscar-nominated actor best known for her performances in Lenny and Superman, has died. She was 82.

The Texas-born actor started her career as a showgirl in Las Vegas. Prior to her film career, Perrine was invited to a party at Sharon Tate’s home in 1969 by Hollywood hair stylist Jay Sebring. She was unable to attend, and that night the Manson Family murdered six people including Sebring.

In 2022, Perrine was the subject of Stacey Souther’s documentary Valerie, which looked back at her career and her resilience after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2015.

Her death was announced by Souther in a post on Perrine’s official Facebook page. She wrote: “It is with deep sadness that I share the heartbreaking news that Valerie has passed away. She faced Parkinson’s disease with incredible courage and compassion, never once complaining.

“She was a true inspiration who lived life to the fullest—and what a magnificent life it was. The world feels less beautiful without her in it. I love you, Valerie. I’ll see you on the other side.”

Souther also shared a GoFundMe link which is raising funds to support Perrine being laid to rest at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Los Angeles.

Perrine was born September 3, 1943, in Galveston, Texas. Her father was a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army and her mother was a Broadway dancer.

In 1968, Perrine started working as a showgirl at “Lido de Paris” at the Stardust Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. She was engaged to gun collector and importer Bill Haarman, who died in a gun accident in January 1969 a month before they were set to marry.

Later that year, Perrine had started dating Jay Sebring and he invited her to join him at a dinner party at actor Sharon Tate’s house in Benedict Canyon, Los Angeles on August 9, 1969. Perrine planned to attend, but at the last minute the showgirl who had agreed to cover for her fell ill and she was forced to work. That night, members of the Manson Family cult broke into the home and killed six people, including Sebring. In 2023, on the anniversary of his death, Perrine wrote on X: “Remembering Jay Sebring today. We dated. I was supposed to be with him at Sharon Tate’s house.”

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A couple of years later, Perrine was spotted at another Hollywood party and offered a small role as Montana Wildhack in the 1972 film adaptation of Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five. She followed that with a role opposite Jeff Bridges in NASCAR movie The Last American Hero.

In 1974, she played controversial comedian Lenny Bruce’s wife, Honey Bruce, in the biopic Lenny. For her performance, she won the Best Actress Award at the Cannes film festival and was nominated for both an Oscar and a Golden Globe.

Perhaps Perrine’s best-known role was as Eve Teschmacher, the love interest of Gene Hackman’s Lex Luthor in Superman (1978) and Superman II (1980).