Texas Twiggy

Shelley Duvall is most known for her portrayal of Wendy Torrance in Stanley Kubrick's 1980 film The Shining, a performance that launched her into the public consciousness and furthered an already prolific career. But after decades in film, production, writing, composing, and the release of two musical albums, Duvall seemingly dropped off the face of the earth... Until a disastrous 2016 appearance on the Dr. Phil show, so maligned that it never aired. Texas Twiggy dives deep into the life and work of Shelley Duvall, with plenty of twists and turns along the way.

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Episodes

I'll See Ya

Today, on what would have been Shelley’s 76th birthday, Texas Twiggy returns with a retrospective and a reflection on Shelley’s mark on the world. In the very early stages of production, Emma connected with Sarah Lukowski. At the time, Sarah was a fellow Shelley admirer who ran a collection of fan pages called the Shelley Duvall Archive. In the years that followed the release of Texas Twiggy, Sarah and Shelley became close friends. Featuring exclusive clips from their time together, this episode...

Jul 07, 2025•39 min

Trailer: Gooned

From the team that brought you Texas Twiggy comes Gooned, a podcast about the Troubled Teen Industry. Gooned is a deep dive into an industry with blood on its hands. The Troubled Teen Industry (TTI) is a network of profit-incentivized behavior modification facilities for youth, ranging from wilderness programs to therapeutic boarding schools. The decades-old industry uses predatory tactics to capitalize on families in crisis and victimize hundreds of thousands of children and teens every year. G...

Dec 08, 2023•2 min

Smoking Guns and Chicken Salad

So, the big question: Why? What happened? Do we get to hear from Shelley? Tune in to the last episode of Texas Twiggy to answer the remaining burning questions –– and honor for one last time the spectacular career and influence of Shelley Duvall! Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/texastwiggy/exclusive-content

May 11, 2022•29 min

Blanco

After her retreat from the public, where did Shelley go? Who does she know, and who knows her? What is Shelley doing now? Where is she? Learn about Shelley’s community and life as she lives it today. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/texastwiggy/exclusive-content

May 04, 2022•25 min

Not a Doctor

It was the infamous appearance that catapulted Shelley back into the public eye –– that 2016 Dr. Phil interview. Learn about the show and its titular “doctor,” and why Shelley’s personal life and re-emergence are so much more nuanced than how she was portrayed. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/texastwiggy/exclusive-content

Apr 27, 2022•23 min

Shelleyvision

Shelley’s claim to fame was acting. But what you may not know is that she was an extraordinarily prolific producer, creating and hosting Emmy-nominated shows for children, which she calls her best work. She’s even responsible for the television originals format! Listen to dive into Shelley’s impressive and elusive career behind the camera. Hope LaMond Instagram @citvgirl1998 Youtube.com/queenofvhs Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/texastwiggy/exclusive-content...

Apr 20, 2022•25 min

Shelley's Keepers

Go inside the community surrounding Shelley Duvall, from her family to her friends to her fans, and everyone who blurs those lines. Xavier Hamel Xavierhamel.com Instagram @catdaddddddy Ryan Obermeyer Ryanobermeyer.com Etsy etsy.com/shop/RyanObermeyer Instagram @ryanobermeyer Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/texastwiggy/exclusive-content...

Apr 13, 2022•27 min

Hello, I’m Shelley Duvall

Once upon a time in a magical kingdom called Hollywood, there lived a fair maiden named Shelley Duvall, who loved fairy tales… So begins the story of Shelley’s empire of children’s shows, movies, albums, and other content that should be widely recognized as her magnum opus. Learn how Shelley revolutionized the genre of TV, got started as a director with no experience, and, of course, why Faerie Tale Theatre is a very gay show. Wyatt Fenner Instagram @wyattfenner Twitter @wyattfenner Gay Card Rev...

Apr 06, 2022•37 min

The Final Girl

Examining Shelley through the lens of the “final girl” horror trope, talking about feminist film theory, and questioning the popular perception of Wendy Torrance and Shelley’s portrayal of the character. Want to learn about the filmic phallus and castration anxiety? Tune in! Robert Hickerson roberthickerson.com Instagram @roberthickerson Bilge Ebiri Twitter @BilgeEbiri vulture.com/author/bilge-ebiri Further reading on The Shining and the final girl: Bilge Ebiri, The Discomforting Legacy of Wendy...

Mar 30, 2022•27 min

The Morning with Gold in its Mouth

It’s the film we all know so well: the renowned horror classic The Shining. Uncover the secrets and backstories behind this movie, from the original terrible reviews, to Kubrick’s temper, to a particularly tasteless breakup at the airport. Why the name? The infamous typewriter scene where Jack types and re-types reams of paper with the phrase “all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy” was reshot with different translations for several languages. The Italian version saw Jack writing “Il mattino...

Mar 23, 2022•31 min

Spinach, Cocaine, and Henry Kissinger

Regular Bob, Cocaine Bob, figurative tons of cocaine and literal tons of bricks and lumber, and former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger come together to create the insanity that is Popeye (1980). On the small European island of Malta, Shelley’s magnum opus is born. Patrons: Ken Lehman Xavier Hamel José Armenta Kelly Elasser Cavid Dassidy Sharon Dan Travis Sarah Elizabeth Sophia Pulido Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/texastwiggy/exclusive-content...

Mar 16, 2022•25 min

How Would You Like to be in a Movie?

In which Shelley throws and attends some life-altering parties, models a swimsuit for disaster relief, dates a Beatle, and sells her boyfriend’s “unremarkable” paintings to two directors in disguise. And, I write and send some old-fashioned snail mail. CORRECTION: Seth Abramovitch's article on Shelley was published in 2021, not 2018. Find it here: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/feature/searching-for-shelley-duvall-the-reclusive-icon-on-fleeing-hollywood-and-the-scars-of-making-the-shining-413...

Mar 09, 2022•29 min

The Texas Twiggy

Shelley Alexis Duvall was born on July 7th, 1949 in Fort Worth, Texas to an insurance broker and one of Houston’s first woman real estate agents. 70 years later, I would stumble across one of her films on Amazon Prime and Google her name. 3 years after that, and I am sitting in the passenger seat of her brother’s car, 1,500 miles from my own apartment, idling in front of her childhood home. How did it all come to be, and what is Texas Twiggy? Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/texas...

Mar 02, 2022•29 min

Trailer

Shelley Duvall is most known for her portrayal of Wendy Torrance in Stanley Kubrick's 1980 film The Shining , a performance that launched her into the public consciousness and furthered an already prolific career. But after decades in film, production, writing, composing, and the release of two musical albums, Duvall seemingly dropped off the face of the earth... Until a disastrous 2016 appearance on the Dr. Phil show, so maligned that it never aired. Texas Twiggy dives deep into the life and wo...

Sep 22, 2021•5 min

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