January 31, 1954 – May 17, 2024
Linda Ann Gehringer, much-loved wife, stepmother, sister, aunt and acclaimed actress, died at her home in Laguna Beach, California, on May 17, 2024, at the age of 70. Her passing created a void in the lives of those who loved her, but also leaves a spectacular legacy of joy, laughter, love, friendship, boundless energy, endless spirit, and tremendous accomplishment in the acting world, on-screen, but especially on stage, where Linda was truly at home.
Linda was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, where she attended St. Mary’s of Redford, where she first found the stage in various high school productions. She received her BFA from Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan, where she frequently performed in productions at the Barn Theater there. Linda went on to receive her MFA from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis and, upon graduation, was awarded the prestigious Bush Fellowship, which entitled her to spend a year performing at the Guthrie Theater, one of the top regional theaters in the country. She also met her first husband, Ken Bryant, a theater director and MFA recipient there and they were married in 1980. Ken’s extended family are also Laguna Beach residents.
Linda and Ken spent several years in New York before moving to Dallas. Linda performed in many plays in Dallas, while Ken became the youngest artistic director in the country when he was named the artistic director of the Dallas Theater Center. Their idyllic lives were torn apart when Ken was accidentally killed in 1990.
Shortly before that tragedy, Linda had been cast in a regular role on Evening Shade, a sitcom that ran for four years from 1990 through 1994. After Ken’s death, she made her home in Laurel Canyon. In 1993, while visiting Ken’s parent’s home in Laguna Beach, Linda met Chris Farley, their next-door neighbor. Linda and Chris were married in 1998. Linda took on her new roles as Chris’s spouse and stepmother to Chris’s two children, Margot and Brian, who were then teenagers, while remaining fully engaged as a theater, film and television actor.
Linda achieved remarkable success and gained a stellar reputation as an actor, appearing on over forty television shows and several films. However, Linda’s true home and the place she most loved to perform was the live stage. She captivated audiences and had an enviable ability to fully embody a wide range of leading characters, from classic Shakespearean roles to the most modern, leaving no detail too trivial to execute to perfection. Beginning in 1997, Linda became an integral player at South Coast Repertory Theater, eventually appearing in 23 plays. She also participated in developing new plays through readings and the annual Pacific Playwrights Festival and the Ojai Playwrights Conference. Linda also performed at major theater venues throughout the country, including New York, Chicago, Washington D.C., Boston, Berkeley, Baltimore, Seattle and the Berkshires. More information about her roles in TV, movies and stage productions can be found on the memorial website and broadwayworld.com.
The Covid pandemic curtailed not only her career but all live theater. Her final play, The Outgoing Tide, was staged at the North Coast Repertory Theater in the Summer of 2022.
Though her work was incredibly important to her and to the theater world, what Linda contributed most uniquely to all who knew her was her beautiful spirit. Linda not only always injected fun, warmth and laughter into every room she entered, but she also made every person feel they were the most important person in the room, and Linda would do anything to make their life easier, richer, better, or just more fun. She could be silly, goofy, or intensely emotional, but always was pure, unadulterated, and inimitable Linda, a truly extraordinary treasure.
Linda will be sorely missed by her audiences, her fellow professionals and her extended family. With her passing, the world lost a truly shining star.
Linda is survived by her husband, Chris Farley; her stepchildren, Margot Farley Stuart (Sean) and Brian Farley; her grandchildren, Baillie, Avery, and Weston Stuart, and Lia Farley; her brother, Matt Gehringer (Su Metzel), and her sister, Carole Whitney (Mike), and her niece Ava (Brennan Hutson), nephews, Jackson Gehringer and Jake Whitney and grand-niece, Lucy Hutson. She was predeceased by her mother, Beata Maria Gehringer (nee Karabees), father, Charles K. Gehringer, Sr., brother, Charles (Charley) Gehringer, Jr., and sister-in-law, Nancy Gehringer (nee Richter), and her first husband, Kenneth Bryant.
There will be a Celebration of Life in Laguna Beach for friends, both personal and professional, and extended family. Details to come. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to be made in Linda’s memory to South Coast Repertory or another theater of your choice. To visit her tribute: Linda’s Tribute Page: mccormickandson.com/obituary/linda-gehringer.
