Age, Biography and Wiki
Shelley Long was born on August 23, 1949, in Fort Wayne, Indiana. As of 2025, she is 75 years old. She is the only child of Ivadine (née Williams), a schoolteacher, and Leland Long, who initially worked in the rubber industry before becoming a teacher. Long was active on her high school speech team, winning the National Forensic League's National Championship in Original Oratory in 1967.
| Occupation | Stage Actress |
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| Date of Birth | 23 August 1949 |
| Age | 75 Years |
| Birth Place | Fort Wayne, Indiana, U.S. |
| Horoscope | Leo |
| Country | India |
Height, Weight & Measurements
Although specific details about her height and weight are not widely available, Shelley Long is known for her tall, slender build, which complemented her on-screen presence.
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Dating & Relationship Status
Long has been married twice: first to Ken Solomon from 1973 to 1979, and then to Bruce Tyson from 1981 to 2004. She has one daughter, Juliana Long Tyson, born in 1985.
Long appeared in the 1979 television film The Cracker Factory as a psychiatric inmate. In the same year she guest starred on Family and Trapper John, M.D., and played Nurse Mendenhall in an episode of M*A*S*H. In 1980, she appeared in her first feature film role in A Small Circle of Friends. The film about social unrest at Harvard University during the 1960s enjoyed a level of critical success. In 1981, she played the role of Tala in Caveman. In 1982, she starred as Belinda, the good-natured prostitute neighbor of the character portrayed by Henry Winkler in Ron Howard's comedy Night Shift (also co-starring Michael Keaton), and starred with Tom Cruise in Losin' It (1983). She was offered the role of Mary, the mother in Steven Spielberg's E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, but turned it down because she had already signed on to appear in Night Shift.
Although she had already been in feature films, Long became famous for her role in the long-running television sitcom Cheers as the character Diane Chambers, who has a tempestuous on-and-off relationship with Sam Malone. The show was slow to capture an audience but eventually became one of the more popular on the air. Amid some controversy, Long left Cheers after season five in 1987.
In 1992, she starred in Fatal Memories: The Eileen Franklin Story, a television drama about a woman who remembers the childhood trauma of being raped by her father and his cronies, and witnessing him murder her childhood friend to prevent the child from "telling on him," based on a 1989 case. The still-controversial "recovered memories" basis for the prosecution resulted in the conviction and sentencing of life imprisonment of George Franklin, a conviction that was later overturned.
Long guest-starred in several TV shows such as 8 Simple Rules, Yes Dear, Strong Medicine, and Boston Legal. She had a recurring role on the popular ABC sitcom Modern Family as DeDe Pritchett, the ex-wife of Jay Pritchett. She starred in television films, including Falling in Love with the Girl Next Door and Holiday Engagement. In 2012, she made a guest appearance on Switched at Birth. In 2016, Long produced and acted in the feature film Different Flowers.
Long's first marriage, to Ken Solomon, ended in divorce in the 1970s after only a few years. In 1979, she met her second husband, Bruce Tyson, a securities broker. They married in 1981 and had a daughter, Juliana. Long and Tyson separated in 2003 and divorced in 2004.
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| Husband | Ken Solomon (div. 1970s) Bruce Tyson (m. 1981-2004) |
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Net Worth and Salary
As of 2025, Shelley Long's net worth varies across different sources. While some reports estimate it at $3 million, others suggest it could be as high as $5 million or even $10 million. However, a more recent estimate by TheRichest places her net worth at $16 million.
Career, Business and Investments
Long's career began in Chicago, where she was part of the Second City comedy troupe. She gained prominence with her role as Diane Chambers on "Cheers," which earned her numerous awards, including an Emmy and two Golden Globes. She appeared in films like "Night Shift," "The Money Pit," and "The Brady Bunch Movie". Long reprised her role in episodes of "Frasier" and played DeDe Pritchett on "Modern Family".
She is the only child of Ivadine (née Williams), a schoolteacher, and Leland Long who worked in the rubber industry before becoming a teacher as well.
Social Network
Shelley Long maintains a relatively low profile on social media, as her focus has shifted from active acting to personal life in recent years.
In a 2003 interview with Graham Norton, Long said she left for a variety of reasons, the most important of which was her desire to spend more time with her daughter. In a 2007 interview on Australian television, Long said Danson was "a delight to work with" and talked of her love for co-star Nicholas Colasanto ("Coach"), who was "one of my closest friends on set". She said she left the show because she "didn't want to keep doing the same episode over and over again and the same story. I didn't want it to become old and stale." She went on to say that "working at Cheers was a dream come true...it was one of the most satisfying experiences of my life. So, yes, I missed it, but I never regretted that decision."
Long's first post-Cheers project was Hello Again, a comedy about a housewife who is brought back from the dead. This was followed by Troop Beverly Hills, a comedy about another housewife who takes leadership of a 'Wilderness Girl' troop to bond with her daughter and distract herself from divorce proceedings. Neither film was successful with critics or at the box office. In 1990, Long returned to television for the fact-based miniseries Voices Within: The Lives of Truddi Chase. She received critical praise for the role, which required her to portray nearly 20 personalities. This introduced her to more dramatic roles in TV films, after which she starred in several more throughout the 1990s.
Education
Long attended Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, to study drama but did not complete her degree, opting instead to pursue a career in modeling and acting.
Shelley Long's career has been highlighted by her iconic role in "Cheers," and despite variations in her reported net worth, her contributions to the entertainment industry remain significant.
Shelley was raised in the Presbyterian faith. She was active on her high school speech team, competing in the Indiana High School Forensic Association. In 1967, she won the National Forensic League's National Championship in Original Oratory.
