EP#110 Dee Wallace

Kevin Lane's Spill Your Guts

Captivating, Challenging and Always Entertaining, Dee Wallace Is The Grand Dame of Horror

There’s an old adage that says never meet your heroes. We’d like to make an amendment to that phrase and change it to never meet your heroes unless they work in the horror genre. Host Kevin Lane has had the great privilege to have friendships with most of his heroes in the world of horror cinema, and to work with many of these friends. And though he cherishes all of those friends and colleagues, there is no one who has made a bigger impact on his life and career than Dee Wallace.

Anyone listening to Spill Your Guts is likely a fan of Dee’s vast and astonishing body of work. From the game changing Steven Spielberg blockbuster E.T., where she plays the loveable and entirely authentic single mother of two boys who encounter you know who, to lead roles in smash hit horror films like Wes Craven’s The Hills Have Eyes, Joe Dante’s The Howling, and Stephen Herek’s Critters.

The film that made Kevin fall for Dee (and boy did he fall hard!) was Lewis Teague’s film adaptation of Stephen King’s Cujo. In an Oscar worthy performance, Dee plays Donna Trenton, a mother who must protect her child from a rabid Saint Bernard. Almost half of the film features Dee trapped in a Ford Pinto and it is some of the most harrowing work ever put on film. It is no wonder that Stephen King himself has said that Dee’s performance is his favorite of all the performances in film or television based on a character he wrote.

And that’s just scratching the surface of Dee’s career which spans over 250 film and television roles, including work with genre legends Peter Jackson in The Frighteners, and an ongoing collaboration with Rob Zombie. However, it isn’t just Dee’s tireless work ethic and standout performances that makes her so special, it’s also a lot to do with the quality of person she is. You will never meet a more genuine, sincere, funny, caring and generous person than Dee Wallace.

Dee and Kevin discuss her early years as a girl in Kansas who dreamed of being on the stage, how she has always managed to persevere despite an inordinate amount of loss and hardship, the exhaustive and exhilarating lengths she will go to embody a character. They also discuss her healing work and the incredible impact it has had on some many people both through her speaking engagements and her books. Oh, and they also play a fun game!

Though she has played many dark characters, Dee is a bright shining light so sit back and prepare to be inspired.

Get bonus content on Patreon

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★