Sally Kirkland, a former model who went on to become a celebrated actress, has died at the age of 84.
Kirkland passed away on Tuesday in the United States after spending the past year in a Palm Springs hospice. Her representative, Michael Greene, confirmed she had been living with dementia.
Friends said the actor had faced several health challenges in recent years, including multiple fractures to her neck, wrist and hip, as well as infections that required hospitalisation and rehabilitation.
A fundraising account was set up in 2024 to help with her medical care.
Kirkland was best known for her Oscar-nominated performance in the 1987 film Anna, where she played a fading Czech movie star rebuilding her life in the United States. The role earned her a Golden Globe and widespread acclaim, alongside fellow nominees Cher, Glenn Close, Holly Hunter and Meryl Streep.
“Kirkland is one of those performers whose talent has been an open secret to her fellow actors but something of a mystery to the general public,” one Los Angeles critic wrote at the time.
“There should be no confusion about her identity after this blazing comet of a performance.”
Over her six-decade career, Kirkland appeared alongside big names in films including The Sting with Paul Newman and Robert Redford, The Way We Were with Barbra Streisand, Revenge with Kevin Costner, Heatwave with Cicely Tyson and Bruce Almighty with Jim Carrey.
She also had television roles in Criminal Minds, Roseanne, and Charlie’s Angels.
Born in New York City, Kirkland was the daughter of a Vogue and Life magazine fashion editor who encouraged her to start modelling at age five.
After graduating from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, she studied under renowned acting teachers Philip Burton and Lee Strasberg.
Kirkland began her career on stage, appearing in Shakespeare productions such as A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Tempest.
“I don’t think any actor can really call him or herself an actor unless he or she puts in time with Shakespeare,” she told the Los Angeles Times in 1991.
“It shows up in the work – in breath control, in appreciating language as poetry and music, and in the power Shakespeare instills in you.”
Throughout her life, Kirkland was also known for her spiritual interests and humanitarian work. She was involved in several New Age movements, taught Insight Transformational Seminars, and volunteered for causes supporting people with AIDS, cancer and heart disease.
She also worked with the American Red Cross to feed the homeless and supported young prisoners.
Image: Shutterstock
