# Well-known actors/actresses that have retired. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 1, 2010, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-known-actors-actresses-that-have-retired/530930 "2010-03-01T23:14:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-known-actors-actresses-that-have-retired/530930/21 "2010-03-02T06:05:59Z")
Victor Mature. Ronald Reagan. From acting, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 6:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-known-actors-actresses-that-have-retired/530930/22 "2010-03-02T06:59:40Z")
Hasn’t Arnold Schwarzenegger effectively retired from acting? His last role before becoming governor of California was “Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines,” and except for a small role in 2004’s “Around the World in 80 Days” and a cameo appearance in “The Kid and I,” he hasn’t appeared in a film since. And he’s rumored to be considering a run for the Senate when his term as governor is ended. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Jeffrey\_Lebowski](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_jeffrey_lebowski/32/215_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Jeffrey\_Lebowski](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Jeffrey_Lebowski)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 8:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-known-actors-actresses-that-have-retired/530930/23 "2010-03-02T08:21:39Z")
Maria Falconetti Sarah Holcomb ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-known-actors-actresses-that-have-retired/530930/24 "2010-03-02T13:16:17Z")
Bridget Fonda ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-known-actors-actresses-that-have-retired/530930/25 "2010-03-02T13:43:00Z")
Sarah Holcomb - not exactly well known but she was in Animal House as the mayor’s daughter and the Irish girl in Caddyshack. She quit acting because she got into drugs, she decided it was the best way to get clean. ---
**Author:** ![Das\_Glasperlenspiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/das_glasperlenspiel/32/2944_2.png) [@Das\_Glasperlenspiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Das_Glasperlenspiel)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-known-actors-actresses-that-have-retired/530930/26 "2010-03-02T15:13:45Z")
Kim Novak ---
**Author:** ![Rrose\_Selavy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bcef8e/32.png) [@Rrose\_Selavy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rrose_Selavy)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-known-actors-actresses-that-have-retired/530930/27 "2010-03-02T15:32:23Z")
[Jane Russell](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jane_Russell) ---
**Author:** ![Enright3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/enright3/32/2897_2.png) [@Enright3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enright3)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-known-actors-actresses-that-have-retired/530930/28 "2010-03-02T15:42:44Z")
> [@wintertime](#): > > Phoebe Cates ☹ Which is a shame… She shoulda won the Acadamy Award for her performance in Fast Times at Ridgemont High, I tell ya! ---
**Author:** ![Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellis_Aponte_Jr)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-known-actors-actresses-that-have-retired/530930/29 "2010-03-02T15:43:14Z")
We’ve been here before… [thread=474984]Actors who suddenly stopped acting[/thread] ---
**Author:** ![Jim\_s\_Son](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19adc/32.png) [@Jim\_s\_Son](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_s_Son)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-known-actors-actresses-that-have-retired/530930/30 "2010-03-02T16:45:43Z")
Double Oscar winner Luise Rainer has had decades of not making films/TV appearances, punctuated by appearing on such high quality features as “The Love Boat”. She has not worked since 1997 but since she turned 100 last January, maybe she’ll make another appearance a decade from now. ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-known-actors-actresses-that-have-retired/530930/31 "2010-03-02T16:54:06Z")
How about **Meg Tilly**? She was really big in the 80s, even got an Oscar nomination for _Agnes of God_. IN the 90s she had only a few roles, none memorable, and she seems to have stopped working entirely in 1995. Her sister Jennifer has had more recent success. ---
**Author:** ![McGeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f4b2a3/32.png) [@McGeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/McGeek)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-known-actors-actresses-that-have-retired/530930/32 "2010-03-02T17:09:04Z")
> [@Actors who suddenly stopped acting](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-suddenly-stopped-acting/455954/72): > > **Wil Wheaton** , child star of _Stand by Me_ and _Star Trek: The Next Generation_, is now a husband, father, and author – and has an open, well-written blog ([WWdn: In Exile](http://wilwheaton.typepad.com/wwdnbackup/)). He was alos on an episode of The Big Bang Theory. True, he was “playing himself”, but still, it was acting. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-known-actors-actresses-that-have-retired/530930/33 "2010-03-02T17:13:03Z")
The last three posts in this thread were originally posted [in this older thread.](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=474984) Since they are on the same subject, I’ve moved them over here and locked the other discussion. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-known-actors-actresses-that-have-retired/530930/34 "2010-03-02T17:54:16Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > Hasn’t Arnold Schwarzenegger effectively retired from acting? His last role before becoming governor of California was “Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines,” and except for a small role in 2004’s “Around the World in 80 Days” and a cameo appearance in “The Kid and I,” he hasn’t appeared in a film since. And he’s rumored to be considering a run for the Senate when his term as governor is ended. He’ll be back. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-known-actors-actresses-that-have-retired/530930/35 "2010-03-02T17:57:29Z")
Ruby Keeler retired at the height of her stardom after she divorced Al Jolsen. She did appear in a few things, but pretty much stayed away from acting for 30 years. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-known-actors-actresses-that-have-retired/530930/36 "2010-03-02T18:07:45Z")
> [@Valgard](#): > > Dunno how I forgot Shirley Temple Black. Retired from movies decades ago. I think she probably saw the writing on the wall, especially after being eclipsed by Judy Garland and the like, and decided retiring gracefully was for the best. she was a dynamite child star, but it doesn’t always translate to adult roles. I met her in Prague when she was Ambassador there, but was cautioned beforehand not to bring up her film career. She apparently considers her diplomatic career to be her crowning success. As for many of the others listed (like Meg Tilly), “retirement” often means “nobody will hire me”. Tilly pops up in the poker tournaments as a perennial loser. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-known-actors-actresses-that-have-retired/530930/37 "2010-03-02T18:15:00Z")
Jan Smithers. I love you Jan Smithers! ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-known-actors-actresses-that-have-retired/530930/38 "2010-03-02T18:15:48Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > …Tilly pops up in the poker tournaments as a perennial loser. Which Tilly are you referring to here? Jennifer has won enough to not be considered a “perennial loser.” ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-known-actors-actresses-that-have-retired/530930/39 "2010-03-02T18:18:42Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > Hasn’t Arnold Schwarzenegger effectively retired from acting? His last role before becoming governor of California was “Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines,” and except for a small role in 2004’s “Around the World in 80 Days” and a cameo appearance in “The Kid and I,” he hasn’t appeared in a film since. And he’s rumored to be considering a run for the Senate when his term as governor is ended. He’ll also appear in a cameo in this summer’s The Expendables. Personally, I don’t think he’s done with acting completely and will do one last big action movie after he’s no longer governor. ---
**Author:** ![Nars\_Glinley](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nars_glinley/32/8177_2.png) [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-known-actors-actresses-that-have-retired/530930/40 "2010-03-02T18:23:31Z")
Susan Dey has apparently stopped acting. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-known-actors-actresses-that-have-retired/530930.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-known-actors-actresses-that-have-retired/530930.md?page=3)