I had no idea she died. I just saw her in a 1980s TVM, so I googled her.
Died:tJuly 15, 1996 (aged 32)
Burbank, California, USA
Cause of death:tStroke after complications from Type 1 diabetes
Offsite Link| by Anonymous | reply 83 | February 23, 2019 2:19 AM |
Look at her sad little face.
She had great pathos.
Offsite Link| by Anonymous | reply 2 | September 13, 2016 4:24 PM |
Outstanding in SHOOT THE MOON, there was talk at the time of her being a possible Oscar nominee. She richly deserved to be among the nominees that year.
| by Anonymous | reply 3 | September 13, 2016 4:30 PM |
I forgot that she was in Shoot The Moon.
[quote] She richly deserved to be among the nominees that year.
I agree.
Offsite Link| by Anonymous | reply 4 | September 13, 2016 4:33 PM |
She was great co-starring with Pearl Bailey in the live TV version of The Member of the Wedding on NBC in the early 80s.
| by Anonymous | reply 5 | September 13, 2016 4:47 PM |
All this time I thought her name was Dana Elcar.
| by Anonymous | reply 6 | September 13, 2016 4:51 PM |
Don't be silly R6. She was diabetic. An eclair would have shot her sugar through the roof.
| by Anonymous | reply 7 | September 13, 2016 4:54 PM |
Maybe that's what killed her.
Like Mama Cass's ham sandwich.
| by Anonymous | reply 8 | September 13, 2016 4:56 PM |
[quote]Hill slipped into a diabetic coma in May 1996 and suffered a massive paralytic stroke the following month. On July 15, 1996, Hill died at age 32.
| by Anonymous | reply 9 | September 13, 2016 5:01 PM |
SHOOT THE MOON ruled. Loved it. The kids were great, Albert Finney was top notch and it contains one of Diane Keaton's best performances.
| by Anonymous | reply 10 | September 13, 2016 5:04 PM |
[quote]and it contains one of Diane Keaton's best performances.
Another film she gives just one lineto, in her dreadful book.
I agree, she was wonderful in it.
Finney was a little bit heavy going. That's why I find it hard to re-watch.
Peter whatisname was hot, though.
Offsite Link| by Anonymous | reply 11 | September 13, 2016 5:10 PM |
I loved her in European Vacation...seriously!
| by Anonymous | reply 13 | September 13, 2016 5:25 PM |
Me too, R12, she was a soulful little actress.
| by Anonymous | reply 14 | September 13, 2016 5:26 PM |
How common is it for a young person to succumb to complications from diabetes? Might it be that she was a heavy drinker and didn't take care of herself?
| by Anonymous | reply 15 | September 13, 2016 5:35 PM |
I only remember her as a child actress.
| by Anonymous | reply 16 | September 13, 2016 5:36 PM |
I remember her best appearing on the Tonight Show.
She had Johnny Carson howling with her impersonation of Howard Cosell.
| by Anonymous | reply 18 | September 13, 2016 8:25 PM |
Here's the classic TV movie FALLEN ANGEL where "Hold me, David!" lures her into kiddie pron.
Offsite Link| by Anonymous | reply 19 | September 13, 2016 8:33 PM |
She was also on the short lived sitcom, THE TWO OF US, with Mimi Kennedy and Peter Cook.
Offsite Link| by Anonymous | reply 20 | September 13, 2016 8:35 PM |
Was she in 'Welcome Home, Jellybean'?
| by Anonymous | reply 21 | September 13, 2016 9:14 PM |
She was in major consideration for the ANNELLE role in "Steel Magnolias" that Daryl Hannah (inexplicably) got. Dana had several callbacks for it.
See HRT threads for more Dana Hill stuff. I adored her.
| by Anonymous | reply 22 | September 13, 2016 9:20 PM |
Ok I have google and YES it was she who went full tard in 'Welcome Home, Jellybean'. Perfect casting. I also saw that nasty 'fallen angels' lol didn't know it was called that. But of course this chick is dearly missed because she was in European Vacation. Should have been Oscar nominated for THAT. Should have been best actor, actress, supporting actor, supporting actress. Fuck shoot the moon. Albert finney was scary then and now. And Diane Keaton has a face for radio and sucks as an actress
| by Anonymous | reply 23 | September 13, 2016 9:20 PM |
She was very talented, but she couldn't get roles as an adult because she remained so physically small (like Gary Coleman) that she still looked like a child. She found voice work, though. A shame she died so young.
| by Anonymous | reply 24 | September 13, 2016 10:17 PM |
This is how she looked as an adult.
Very 80s frau in style.
Offsite Link| by Anonymous | reply 25 | September 13, 2016 10:21 PM |
She appeared on a couple episodes of 'Family' as Buddy's nemesis, I always thought she looked like Tracy Gold, who was also working a lot in that time frame. They even played sisters along with Tina Yothers in Shoot the Moon.
| by Anonymous | reply 26 | September 13, 2016 10:25 PM |
She could have done the Ruth Westheimer biopic
| by Anonymous | reply 27 | September 13, 2016 10:25 PM |
Fallen Angel was horrifying and made me think of Richard Masur as a pedophile. Though I'm sure he's a perfectly nice man.
| by Anonymous | reply 29 | September 13, 2016 10:30 PM |
I don't remember that sitcom @R20 at all.
So many sitcoms in those days had New York intros like that.
| by Anonymous | reply 30 | September 13, 2016 10:31 PM |
I remember reading that Hill's diabetes complications were aggravated by attempts to lose weight - apparently it's not uncommon for young women with Type I diabetes to cut down on or stop taking insulin, since you drop weight like crazy (and risk serious health consequences) when you do.
| by Anonymous | reply 31 | September 13, 2016 10:32 PM |
Therefore yet another child actress who got fucked up trying to keep things going into adulthood.
| by Anonymous | reply 32 | September 13, 2016 10:34 PM |
She's cold and dead. Is the Lani O'Grady thread next?
| by Anonymous | reply 33 | September 13, 2016 10:40 PM |
She was a superb and soulful actress.
Very gifted.
Dana Hill (1964–1996), sadly, had a long history of health problems. They even drover her away from acting on-camera.
It has been 20 years. Amazing that time passed; I remember reading about her death. (This was before I was in the Internet.) She deserved better.
| by Anonymous | reply 35 | September 13, 2016 10:48 PM |
I used to get her mixed up with Dana Short, who played Dr. Westphal's daughter on "St. Elsewhere."
| by Anonymous | reply 37 | September 13, 2016 11:23 PM |
Because she was short and her name was Dana?
| by Anonymous | reply 38 | September 13, 2016 11:25 PM |
I was a friend. She was a real rip. Made me laugh so much.
She just did a bad job taking care of herself. Many was the time her blood sugar would drop and we would learn she hadn't eaten all day. Was she trying to starve herself to get thin? Maybe, but we never got that impression. She was neither fat nor thin.
She used to grow pot and there was a time when her parents were visiting and she was drying out some leaves so mixed them into the potpourri in her living room table so they wouldn't see it. She was a real character, and is missed.
| by Anonymous | reply 41 | September 13, 2016 11:49 PM |
Stupid name 'Dana' (no disrespect to her) - a sort of nothing name.
| by Anonymous | reply 42 | September 14, 2016 12:02 AM |
I had a bit of a crush on Jason Lively in European Vacation (I was 11 when the movie came out). I just looked him up on Wiki and was surprised to learn he's the half-brother of Blake Lively. Now he "works for a computer company and is also owner and operator of Jimmy Crack Corn, a mobile roasted-corn business."
He still has his "Rusty" beret!
Offsite Link| by Anonymous | reply 43 | September 14, 2016 12:24 AM |
Thank you for sharing your memories R41. She was a gifted and memorable actress.
| by Anonymous | reply 45 | September 14, 2016 12:43 AM |
I remember her telling me she had a sister also with diabetes -- who had died because she "didn't take care of herself". So I was hoping for another outcome with Dana.
She did make that one unfortunate comment about Julie Andrews that Oscar year but easy to blame on youth. As it turns out, Julie was way more iconic in "Victor/V..." than Keaton in "Shoot the Moon" any day.
| by Anonymous | reply 46 | September 14, 2016 12:48 AM |
She did a lot of voice-over work later on when her health problems developed.
| by Anonymous | reply 47 | September 14, 2016 12:48 AM |
[quote]She did make that one unfortunate comment about Julie Andrews that Oscar year but easy to blame on youth.
What did she say?
| by Anonymous | reply 48 | September 14, 2016 12:59 AM |
[quote] What did she say?
She called her a sloppy smelly cunt.
| by Anonymous | reply 49 | September 14, 2016 1:02 AM |
1982 was a good year for female performances. Both Keaton and Hill deserved nominations, but there was just too much competition.
| by Anonymous | reply 50 | September 14, 2016 1:08 AM |
[quote] What did she say?
She said Andrews's voice was in decline. And implied the decline was caused by Andrews's mouth being glued to Carol Burnett's titi.
| by Anonymous | reply 51 | September 14, 2016 1:35 AM |
Something along the lines of (and in print) "Diane Keaton deserves to be up there and nobody knows that better than Julie Andrews" (and I paraphrase). I'm sure she wasn't happy to have just learned she wasn't up for Best Supporting either after much hype that she would be so maybe she was just lashing out.
| by Anonymous | reply 52 | September 14, 2016 1:43 AM |
I love how she's carefully placed a biography of Howard Cosell behind her in R25's pic, to remind people of the famous Cosell impersonation she did as a kid.
Boy, she looked exactly the same from age 8 on, even when she was an adult.
| by Anonymous | reply 53 | September 14, 2016 9:40 AM |
[quote]I remember her telling me she had a sister also with diabetes -- who had died because she "didn't take care of herself".
People say that a lot but it's mostly denial, the whole "Yeah well I'LL take care of MYSELF and live forever" kind of thing. Type I diabetes often can't be controlled just by "taking care of yourself."
| by Anonymous | reply 54 | September 14, 2016 9:41 AM |
Dreadful that her parents lost TWO daughters to diabetes.
| by Anonymous | reply 55 | September 14, 2016 10:26 AM |
Same here, r13. Great ensemble movie.
| by Anonymous | reply 56 | September 14, 2016 10:44 AM |
I don't believe Dana had a sister.
| by Anonymous | reply 57 | September 18, 2016 1:01 PM |
Why don't you believe it, R57?
There are plenty of references online to her sister and the fact she also died of diabetes.
| by Anonymous | reply 58 | September 18, 2016 1:39 PM |
I really envied and resented her Vacation character for getting the passionate devotion of William Zabka.
| by Anonymous | reply 59 | September 18, 2016 3:22 PM |
The discussion of a sister who died from diabetes came straight from her mouth, R57. It's one of the reasons I adored her; she was open and vulnerable and warm and this was just during casting sessions.
| by Anonymous | reply 60 | September 18, 2016 3:49 PM |
[quote] she was open and vulnerable and warm and this was just during casting sessions.
This comes across very well in her performances. That's why she stands out and that's why this thread has received so much response for someone who wasn't a star and who died twenty years ago. She was just a very good and soulful actress.
{No, I will not MARY! myself}
| by Anonymous | reply 61 | September 18, 2016 3:55 PM |
How DARE you use the condescending adjective "little" to describe her. You have TRIGGERED me!!!
Offsite Link| by Anonymous | reply 63 | September 18, 2016 5:14 PM |
R5, I saw that too. The best production of Member of the Wedding outside of the original movie, though the gayness of Frankie came through much better with Julie Harris.
Unfortunately, Dana Hill most always came across as a little wind-up midget to me.
| by Anonymous | reply 65 | July 31, 2018 8:04 PM |
Who is R64 who bumped this ancient thread? Dana Hill's ghost?
| by Anonymous | reply 66 | July 31, 2018 8:10 PM |
She was hilarious in European Vacation
Offsite Link| by Anonymous | reply 67 | July 31, 2018 8:22 PM |
[quote]Do they get Google Alerts in the hereafter?
I think so, but there's a two-year delay, apparently.
| by Anonymous | reply 68 | July 31, 2018 10:30 PM |
From this 1996 article it seems that she had problems all her life, though even her mother said that she may not have take care of herself as she should have.
Offsite Link| by Anonymous | reply 69 | August 1, 2018 1:50 AM |
She and Haley Orrantia from The Goldbergs have similar faces.
Offsite Link| by Anonymous | reply 70 | August 1, 2018 2:04 AM |
Someone upthread mentioned Steel Magnolias. She was in the stage version I saw with Barbara Rush and Carole Cook- in the part Darryl played in the movie.
| by Anonymous | reply 71 | August 1, 2018 2:11 AM |
Don’t hate me for resurrecting a three-year-old, DL, but I just revisited “Shoot the Moon” in honor of Albert Finney’s recent passing — first time I’d seen it since its theatrical run (yes, I’m old!) Dana Hill’s performance was outstanding, simply heartrending (I’ll accept your “Marys!”) Even sadder to watch knowing she passed away so young. An exceptional talent.
| by Anonymous | reply 72 | February 22, 2019 1:00 PM |
I worked with her and she was a sweetheart. Her health went downhill really quickly but she tried to be a trooper. Until she couldn't anymore. RIP.
| by Anonymous | reply 73 | February 22, 2019 1:16 PM |
She was worthy of an Oscar-nomination for ‘Shoot the Moon.’ I loved her in ‘European Vacation,’ too—she had a gift.
| by Anonymous | reply 74 | February 22, 2019 1:29 PM |
[quote]Don’t hate me for resurrecting a three-year-old, DL,
no, good to see it back again after all these years
[quote]Dana Hill’s performance was outstanding, simply heartrending (I’ll accept your “Marys!”)
Why so defensive? It was.
| by Anonymous | reply 75 | February 22, 2019 1:37 PM |
Dana was a friend of mine. We went to high school together. She had a lot of health problems and was very candid about telling her friends. So we kept an eye out for her. She was good humored. I used to drive her home from school. Her family lived in a huge house south of the boulevard (Ventura Blvd.). She told me one day someone offered her family a million dollars for the house. Homes south of the boulevard were expensive, but not yet in the million dollar range in 1979. I think her parents did sell. Dana had a lot of struggles, but was happy go lucky.
| by Anonymous | reply 76 | February 22, 2019 1:43 PM |
Didn't you post upthread, R76 - or is that someone else who knew her?
| by Anonymous | reply 77 | February 22, 2019 1:48 PM |
I thought I had posted before, but I couldn’t find it. I don’t see my post up thread. I’ll also add, Dana was athletic, but couldn’t really participate because of her diabetes. She was more of an athletic mascot who’d root the team on.
| by Anonymous | reply 78 | February 22, 2019 1:50 PM |
Rewatched SHOOT THE MOON also. Liked her in it a lot but remember not caring for MEMBER OF THE WEDDING. Would like to see that again.
I remember loving SHOOT THE MOON. Didn’t leave with the same impression. Actually enjoyed Keaton’s performance more than Finney.
I actually thought Hill was younger when she died.
| by Anonymous | reply 79 | February 22, 2019 2:13 PM |
I haven’t seen this yet so cannot comment on its merit, but it definitely has an interesting cast — besides Dana Hill, it stars DL faves Jennifer Jason Leigh, Gregory Harrison, and Ms. Rue McClanahan!
Offsite Link| by Anonymous | reply 80 | February 22, 2019 2:27 PM |
I remember reading at the time of her death that she had stopped taking her medications.
| by Anonymous | reply 81 | February 22, 2019 2:46 PM |
A few minutes into “Picnic”, Gregory Harrison takes off his shirt, so it’s a classic in my book! And Dana Hill does a nice job as Millie.
| by Anonymous | reply 82 | February 23, 2019 1:39 AM |
National Lampoon's European Vacation gets a bad rap. I was going to say it's actually John Hughes' most realistic movie with teens, but I heard that Amy Heckerling basically rewrote the whole thing. It really captured teens who are too old to go on vacation with the parents and are bored and miserable and worried about what's going on back at home with their friends and boyfriends/girlfriends.
| by Anonymous | reply 83 | February 23, 2019 2:19 AM |
