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“It is with deep sadness that I share the heartbreaking news that Valerie has passed away,” Perrine’s friend Stacey Souther wrote in a post. “She faced Parkinson’s disease with incredible courage and compassion, never once complaining. She was a true inspiration who lived life to the fullest—and what a magnificent life it was. The world feels less beautiful without her in it.”
She went on to reveal that Perrine’s final wish was to be laid to rest at Forest Lawn Cemetery, but that her fight with Parkinson’s over the past 15 years has left her finances “exhausted.” As a result, she posted a GoFundMe drive seeking $35k, as of this writing there is over $6,000 donated.
Valerie Perrine, Original Eve Teschmacher, Dies at 82
Born in Galveston, Texas, on September 3, 1943, Perrine previously revealed that acting wasn’t a lane she ever considered for herself, but after being discovered by an agent at a party, she was cast in the role of Montana Wildhack in the live-action adaptation of Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five. It proved to be a great stepping stone for her, however, as two years later she would be cast in the 1974 biopic Lenny, telling the story of comedian Lenny Bruce. Starring opposite Dustin Hoffman, Valerie Perrine played his wife, Honey Bruce. The film would go on to be nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actress for Perrine. In just her third performance ever, Perrine earned an Oscar nod, as well as a Golden Globe nomination, and won the Best Actress Award at the Cannes Film Festival.
Four years later, however, Valerie Perrine saw her career take on a different kind of role, starring in Richard Donner’s Superman in a surprising role. Unlike many of the supporting roles in the film, Eve Teschmacher didn’t originate from the pages of DC Comics and was an original creation by Richard Donner and screenwriter Mario Puzo. The personal assistant (and love interest) for Lex Luthor, Teschmacher, has one of the most heroic scenes in the film where she betrays Luthor and actually saves Superman herself.
She reprised her role in Superman II as well, but didn’t return to the franchise after that. Perrine’s portrayal of the original character marked a rare creation for a comic book adaptation, one that came from the pages of the script rather than the source material. Eventually, though, Eve Teschmacher would make her way into DC Comics, and even appeared in last summer’s Superman (played by Sara Sampaio).
Valerie Perrine would continue to act throughout the decades, though, appearing in other films like The Cannonball Run, Boiling Point, and What Women Want, plus multiple television appearances, including episodes of Northern Exposure, ER, Homicide: Life on the Street, and Nash Bridges.
