Craig T. Nelson is remembering his longtime Coach costar Shelley Fabares as an “extraordinary woman” following her death at age 82.
In a statement to Entertainment Weekly on Sunday, August 23 — a day after the beloved actress passed away — Nelson reflected on the near decade they spent working together on the hit ABC sitcom.
“Shelley was a great and grand lady… just a rock. I will miss her,” the Young Sheldon actor said. “She was a foundational part of my life during the run of Coach.”
Fabares died on Saturday, surrounded by loved ones, her family confirmed to People magazine. She played Christine Armstrong, the love interest and later wife of Nelson’s football coach Hayden Fox, throughout the sitcom’s nine-season run.
Nelson, 82, remembered his former costar as “just an extraordinary woman.”
The Grace and Frankie alum continued, “She always had a smile. She was welcoming in the midst of chaos and always someone I could go to for advice and counsel, not only myself but others as well. I’ll remember you with love, Shelley Fabares.”
Before Coach, Fabares had already built a long career in Hollywood. She became a household name on The Donna Reed Show and later starred opposite Elvis Presley in Girl Happy, Spinout and Clambake.
Coach introduced her to a new generation of viewers and earned her two Emmy nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series.
