Shields and Yarnell
| Robert Shields | |
|---|---|
| Born |
March 26, 1951 Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Actor, mime artist |
| Spouse(s) |
Lorene Yarnell (m. 1972; div. 1986) Laurie Burke (m. 2006; her death 2007) Jennifer Griffiths (m. 2009; div. 2014) |
| Lorene Yarnell | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Lorene Louise Yarnell March 21, 1944 Inglewood, California, U.S. |
| Died | July 29, 2010 (aged 66) Sandefjord, Norway |
| Cause of death | Intracranial aneurysm |
| Resting place | Sandar Church Cemetery in Sandefjord, Norway |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Actress, mime artist |
| Notable work | Voice of Ms. Clinker in (1978) Voice of Melissa in (1981) Dot Matrix in Spaceballs (1987) |
| Spouse(s) |
John R. Hartman (m. 1966; div. 1967) Robert Shields (m. 1972; div. 1986) Bjørn Jansson (m. 1996; her death 2010) |
Shields and Yarnell were an American mime team, formed in 1972, consisting of Robert Shields (born March 26, 1951) and Lorene Yarnell (March 21, 1944 – July 29, 2010).
Shields was born in Los Angeles and graduated from Grant High School. At the age of 18, while working as a street mime and performing at the Hollywood Wax Museum, Shields was discovered by Marcel Marceau, who offered Shields a full scholarship to his school of mime in Paris. His apprenticeship was short lived as he felt the need to develop his own style and pry mime loose from its artsy pedestal. Shields soon returned to California, working in Union Square, San Francisco. Shields is credited with being the originator of "The Robot" moves early in his career. In 1974, Shields appeared in Francis Ford Coppola's film The Conversation. In 1998, Shields was recruited by the Ringling Brothers Barnum & Baily Circus to serve as their Director of Clowning.
Lorene Yarnell and Robert Shields met when they worked on "Fol-de-Rol," a 1972 Sid and Marty Krofft TV special that marked Shields' first TV appearance.
Lorene Yarnell (also a native Angeleno) had been a dancer and actress in movies and television shows, including Bye Bye Birdie, Shindig!, and The Carol Burnett Show, as well as off-Broadway musicals, before she met Shields, in San Francisco.
She had speaking guest appearances on The Muppet Show and Wonder Woman which both featured her then-husband, Robert Shields.
Yarnell later appeared as Claudine in a 1983 outdoor production of Can-Can at The Muny in St. Louis, starring Broadway's Judy Kaye, John Reardon, John Schuck, Beth Leavel and Lawrence Leritz, her dance partner, to excellent reviews. On film, Yarnell played Dot Matrix (body acting, with Joan Rivers doing the voice) in the 1987 Mel Brooks movie Spaceballs.
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