One Life To Live Star Shirley Knight Dead At 83

Former OLTL star has passed away. Shirley Knight who was briefly on One Life to Lives died on Wednesday April 21, 2020 of natural causes in San Marcos, Texas. At the time of her death she was 83.

Knight is a two-time Oscar nominated actress who was nominated in the category of best supporting actress for Sweet Bird o Youth and Dark at the Top of the Stairs.

In a lovely tribute shared on Facebook, her daughter, Kaitlin Hopkins started, “Dear Mom, Early this morning April 22nd you passed away, and your sweet soul left us for a better place. I was at your side and you went peacefully. To me, you were “just mom”, to some you were “Miss Knight”, “Miss Shirley”, “Mama Shirley” (to my students), “Shirl the Girl” (to your friends), and “Shirley Knight” to your fans.”

One Life To Live Alum Passes Away

She will be dearly missed. You can visit Facebook to read the rest of the lengthy post. Knight worked even while approaching the age of 80. She reprised her role as Mom in Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 in 2015. Her list of acting credits is a very long one.

She starred in As Good as It Gets, Angel Eyes with Jennifer Lopez, The Salton Sea, The Private Lives of Pippa Lee, Grandma’s Boy, Our Idiot Brother. She is also an eight-time Emmy nominee who won an award for best guest appearance on Thirtysomething in 1988.

Her recent set of credits include Hot in Cleveland and The Mob Doctor. She won a Tony award for featured actress in a play. This was for her performance in Kennedy’s Children by Robert Patrick.

Claire On One Life To Live

She was born, Shirley Enola Knight in Goessel, Kansa and grew up in Mitchell, Kansas and also in Lyons, Kansas at a later date. She studied opera singing and attended Phillips University in Oklahoma and Wichita State University. She earned a Doctor of Fine Arts from Lake Forest College. She also studied at Pasadena Theatre School doing acting there.

In the soap world, she is known for her brief run as Claire on One Life to Live in 1986. It is very sad to hear of her passing. The soap community and the acting world in general has lost a great and talented stalwart. We take this time out to extend our deepest sympathies to the family and friends of Shirley Knight. May her soul rest in peace.