25 Facts About Adrienne Shelly

Adrienne Shelly was an American actress, film director, and screenwriter.

Adrienne Shelly gained recognition for her roles in independent films, particularly Hal Hartley's The Unbelievable Truth and Trust.

Adrienne Shelly later wrote, directed, and co-starred in Waitress, which was released posthumously and later adapted into a Broadway musical.

On November 1,2006, Shelly was found dead in her Manhattan office.

Adrienne Shelly had two brothers and grew up on Long Island.

Adrienne Shelly began performing when she was about 10 at Stagedoor Manor Performing Arts Training Center.

Adrienne Shelly made her professional debut in a summer stock production of the musical Annie while a student at Jericho High School in Jericho, New York.

Adrienne Shelly enrolled in Boston University, majoring in film production, but dropped out after her junior year and moved to Manhattan.

Adrienne Shelly's breakthrough came when she was cast by independent filmmaker Hal Hartley as the lead in The Unbelievable Truth and Trust.

Adrienne Shelly wrote and directed 1999's I'll Take You There, in which she appeared alongside Ally Sheedy.

Adrienne Shelly won a US Comedy Arts Festival Film Discovery Jury Award in 2000 for direction of the film, and Prize of the City of Setubal: Special Mention, at the Festroia held in Setubal, Portugal, for best director.

Adrienne Shelly was active in the theatre scene in New York.

Adrienne Shelly wrote and directed plays for Naked Angels and Alice's 4th floor, acted in off-Broadway shows, served as the creative director of the Missing Children Theater company for five years, taught acting at One on One Productions in Manhattan, and led a workshop at NYU in acting, directing, and writing.

Adrienne Shelly had written the film Waitress during the time she was pregnant with her daughter, Sophie.

Pillco's original version claimed that when Adrienne Shelly demanded the construction noise be kept down, he threw a hammer at her.

Pillco said Adrienne Shelly slapped him when he grabbed her at her apartment door and he retaliated by punching her in the face, knocking her to the ground where she hit her head and fell unconscious.

Adrienne Shelly said he was returning to work after lunch when he noticed Shelly returning to her apartment in the elevator, and decided to follow and rob her.

Adrienne Shelly said he waited on the landing of Shelly's apartment as she entered and left the door open, and intended to steal from her purse.

Adrienne Shelly then dragged her to the bathroom where he hung her body from the shower rod to make her death look like suicide.

The medical examiner determined that Adrienne Shelly was still alive when hanged.

One of Adrienne Shelly's neighbors told reporters that Pillco's stare had made the neighbor feel uncomfortable when she walked past him.

Adrienne Shelly's husband sued contractor Bradford General Contractors, which had hired Pillco.

The film, starring Keri Russell, Nathan Fillion, Cheryl Hines, Jeremy Sisto, Andy Griffith, and Adrienne Shelly was bought during the festival by Fox Searchlight Pictures for an amount between $4 million and $5 million, and the film realized a final box-office draw of more than $19 million.

Ostroy produced Serious Moonlight, a film written by Adrienne Shelly and directed by Hines.

The musical Waitress, based on the motion picture written by Adrienne Shelly, opened on August 1,2015, at the American Repertory Theater which is at Harvard University.