‘Will & Grace’ Stars Pay Tribute To “Our Rosie” After Shelley Morrison Dies Age 83

Tributes are flowing for Will & Grace actress Shelley Morrison, who died on Sunday. She was 83.

Morrison had a 50-year career in entertainment, but was best known for her turn as the scene-stealing maid Rosario in Will & Grace. The character was originally intended to appear in a single episode, but she was so popular NBC kept her for eight seasons.

“Oh, Shelley… what a loss,” Will & Grace star Debra Messing said on Instagram.

“Our dear Rosario has passed on. Shelley had a career that spanned decades, but she will always be our dear Rosie. All my love to Walter and the entire family.”

Fellow Will & Grace actress Megan Mullally said her “heart is heavy” with the news.

“Putting Shelly, her beloved husband Walter and their children in the light,” Mullally said.

“Thank you for your friendship and partnership, Shell. You accomplished wonderful things in this world. You will be missed.”

Morrison died on Sunday from heart failure after a brief illness, her publicist Lori DeWaal told the Associated Press. She is survived by her husband of more than 40 years, Walter Dominguez.

“Rosario is one of my all-time favourite characters,” Morrison said recently, according to the statement announcing her death.

“She reminds me a lot of my own mother, who loved animals and children, but she would not suffer fools. It is very significant to me that we were able to show an older, Hispanic woman who is bright and smart and can hold her own.”

RIP.

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