’60s sitcom star Shelley Fabares’ cause of death has been revealed five days after she passed away in Los Angeles at age 82.
The Donna Reed Show star died following a battle with pneumonia, and had suffered from health issues in the past after being diagnosed with autoimmune hepatitis and receiving a liver transplant in 2000.
Shelley’s family shared a statement in the wake of her death, reflecting on both her stellar career and her strong character.
© Getty Images“To her family and friends, Shelley was a source of love, strength, laughter and comfort,” their statement began.
“She was a devoted wife, cherished stepmother, daughter, sister, niece, aunt, family member, and loyal friend whose warmth, generosity, humor, and grace made an enduring difference in the lives of everyone who knew her.”
The statement continued: “She had a remarkable ability to make people feel welcomed, valued, and cared for. She brought talent, intelligence, and warmth to every performance. But to those closest to her, her greatest legacy was personal: the love she gave so freely, the friendships she treasured, and the family bonds she held dear.”
A stellar career
© Getty ImagesShelley was a TV staple thanks to her roles in One Day at a Time, The Donna Reed Show, Coach, and Brian’s Song, and she also starred in several films, including three with Elvis Presley: Girl Happy (1965), Spinout (1966), and Clambake (1967).
The actress revealed what working with Elvis was really like in an interview, sharing that the musician had a gravitational pull. “The first day of shooting, I’m on the set. Something was happening, and I didn’t know what it was,” she recalled.
“And I looked over, and it was Elvis. He was walking in. He wasn’t doing anything. He was just walking in. The presence that this man had…you couldn’t talk. Nobody did anything. You just sort of stopped. And I remember thinking, ‘Oh, my God. It’s Elvis Presley. I’m never going to be able to open my mouth around him.'”
Aside from her acting career, Shelley also dabbled in the world of music, and released a song called “Johnny Angel” in 1962 that went to number one on the charts.
© FilmPublicityArchive/United Arch“I literally cannot sing. So there’s a lot of overdubbing,” she later shared in an interview.
“The girls in the back – ‘Could you sing a little louder please?’ It was unusual. But [The Donna Reed Show] was very successful at that time, so [the song] had a built-in audience.”
Shelley’s soulmate
© Getty ImagesShelley was married to Lou Adler, a record and film producer, from 1964 to 1980, and then to M*A*S*H star Mike Farrell from 1984 until her death.
Just four months before she passed, Mike detailed the moment that led to their decades-long romance, after knowing each other for years.
© Disney General Entertainment ConOn the Still Here Hollywood Podcast, Mike recalled that he had arrived at a CBS dinner in San Francisco after speaking with refugees in El Salvador.
“I was just blitzed from having had this experience,” he explained. “I looked across the room, and there was this face I recognized, and I walked over to her and said, ‘Excuse me. I just would like you to know that every time I see you, I feel really good, and I feel a little calmer than I had been prior to that.’ And she said, ‘Mike, that’s very sweet, very nice of you.'”
© InstagramAfter spending the night talking, they parted ways as she was seeing someone at the time.
Two months later, he asked her and her boyfriend to attend a talk he was giving about his time in El Salvador, and Shelley brought her sister instead before revealing she was single. They went on to date and tied the knot in 1984.
