Melinda Dillon

Melinda Dillon
Melinda Dillon, c. 1976
Born	Melinda Rose Dillon (1939-10-13) October 13, 1939 (age 77) Hope, Arkansas, U.S.
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1963–2007
Spouse(s)	Richard Libertini (1963–1978; divorced)

Melinda Rose Dillon (born October 13, 1939) is an American actress. She received a 1963 Tony Award nomination for her Broadway debut in the original production of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her roles as Jillian Guiler in Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) and Teresa in Absence of Malice (1981). Her other film appearances include Bound for Glory (1976), F.I.S.T. (1978), A Christmas Story (1983), Harry and the Hendersons (1987), The Prince of Tides (1991) and Magnolia (1999).

Dillon was born in Hope, Arkansas, the daughter of E. Norine (née Barnett) and W. S. Dillon, an Army officer. Dillon attended Hyde Park High School in Chicago.

Dillon was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play, her first major role. Dillon got her start as an improvisational comedian and stage actress as Honey in the original 1962 Broadway production of Edward Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf. She then appeared in You Know I Can't Hear You When the Water's Running and Paul Sill's Story Theatre.