Valerie Mahaffey facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Valerie Mahaffey
|
|
|---|---|
Mahaffey in 2012
|
|
| Born | June 16, 1953 Sumatra, Indonesia
|
| Died | May 30, 2025 (aged 71) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
|
| Education | University of Texas at Austin (BFA) |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1976–2025 |
| Spouse(s) | Joseph Kell |
| Children | 1 |
Valerie Mahaffey was an American actress. She was born on June 16, 1953, and passed away on May 30, 2025. She was well-known for her roles in many popular TV shows and movies.
Valerie Mahaffey started her acting career in the TV show The Doctors from 1979 to 1981. For her work on this show, she was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series in 1980. Later, in 1992, she won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her role in the CBS drama series Northern Exposure.
She also appeared in other famous TV shows like Wings, Desperate Housewives, Devious Maids, Young Sheldon, and Dead to Me. Valerie Mahaffey acted in several movies too, including Senior Trip (1995), Jungle 2 Jungle (1997), Jack and Jill (2011), and Sully (2016). Her performance in the 2020 film French Exit earned her praise and a nomination for an Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female.
Early Life and Education
Valerie Mahaffey was born in Sumatra, Indonesia, on June 16, 1953. Her mother was from Canada, and her father was from the United States. Her father worked in the oil industry, which meant her family moved around a lot. Valerie spent her early years living in Indonesia, Nigeria, and the United Kingdom.
When she was 16, her family moved to Austin, Texas. She graduated from Austin High School there. In 1975, she earned a degree in Fine Arts from the University of Texas at Austin. After college, she made her first appearance on Broadway in a musical called Rex.
Acting Career
Valerie Mahaffey was a regular actress on the soap opera The Doctors from 1979 to 1981. This role led to her first Emmy nomination. In 1986, she starred in the film Women of Valor, which showed the roles of women in the Philippines during World War II. That same year, she also appeared in the TV mini-series Fresno, which made fun of popular TV soap operas.
In the late 1980s, Valerie Mahaffey started acting in TV comedies. She appeared in shows like Newhart, Cheers, and Seinfeld. From 1992 to 1993, she had a role in the sitcom The Powers That Be. In 1995, she was in the sitcom Women of the House with Delta Burke. She also played Tracy Milford in the 1995 movie National Lampoon's Senior Trip and Jan Kempster in the 1997 movie Jungle 2 Jungle. In 1999, she had a recurring role on the medical drama ER.
One of her most famous roles was as Eve in the CBS series Northern Exposure. For this role, she won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series in 1992.
From 2006 to 2007, Valerie Mahaffey played Alma Hodge in the ABC comedy-drama series Desperate Housewives. She also made guest appearances on many other TV shows, including Quantum Leap, L.A. Law, Ally McBeal, Judging Amy, The West Wing, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Frasier, Wings, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Private Practice, Boston Legal, and Raising Hope. From 2011 to 2013, she played Rose Pillsbury, the mother of Emma Pillsbury, on Glee.
In 2013, she co-starred as Fran Horowitz in the medical drama Monday Mornings. From 2013 to 2015, she had a recurring role as Olivia Rice in the Lifetime series Devious Maids.
In 2016, Valerie Mahaffey played Diane Higgins in the movie Sully, which was directed by Clint Eastwood. Starting in 2017, she had a recurring role as Ms. MacElroy in the CBS comedy series Young Sheldon. From 2019 to 2022, she played Lorna Harding, the mother-in-law of Christina Applegate's character, in the Netflix series Dead to Me.
In 2020, Valerie Mahaffey starred with Michelle Pfeiffer in the comedy-drama film French Exit. Critics praised her funny performance in the movie. Later in 2020, she joined the cast of the ABC crime drama series Big Sky as a main character for its first season.
Personal Life
Valerie Mahaffey was married to actor and director Joseph Kell. They had one daughter together.
Valerie Mahaffey passed away from cancer on May 30, 2025, at the age of 71.
Images for kids
-
Valerie Mahaffey at the Governor's Ball after the 1992 Emmy Awards
