Forever Charmed: A tribute to Shannen Doherty

If you grew up in the 80’s, 90’s or even the early 2000’s you were more than likely a huge fan of Shannen Doherty. She captivated all of us throughout the course of her career and how it all played into her personal life which we all saw front and center. Let us take a walk down memory lane and examine the life, career and legacy of the newly ascended Shannen Doherty.

Shannen Maria Doherty was born on April 12, 1971 in Memphis, Tennessee to Tom and Rosa Doherty. Shannen’s career as an actress began when she was just an 11 year old child. After a few small roles on shows like Voyager (1982) and Father Murphy (1983) her biggest break as a child actress would come when she won the role of Jenny Wilder on Little House On The Prairie.

For the remainder of the 80’s Shannen found growing success as an actress with roles in the teen film Girls Just Want To Have Fun (1985) and the TV series Our House from 1986 to 1988, but it was in 1990 that Shannen landed the role of a lifetime that would launch her into international stardom. In 1990 Shannen was cast as Brenda Walsh in 90’s television phenomenon Beverley Hills 90210, produced by the legendary Aaron Spelling.

Shannen captured the hearts of fans all over as the lovable girl next door, Brenda Walsh, who would eventually make the character transition to a bad girl. This drastic changed garnered a highly publicized mixed response from both fans and critics. After four seasons on Beverely Hills 90210 Shannen parted ways with the show due to constant friction between the cast and crew. By 1999 Shannen was reunited with 90210 producer Aaron Spelling when he was producing a supernatural television series about a trio of sisters who were witches called Charmed.

Created by Constance M. Burge and produced by Aaron Spelling, the story of Charmed was centered around three Wiccan sisters known as the Halliwells who come from a blood line of witches that fight against the supernatural forces of evil. Shannen started as the eldest and leading sister, Prudence Halliwell, who is the wisest and most grounded of the three that keeps the Charmed ones as they are called very level headed. For three seasons Shannen wowed audiences with her performance as Prue before departing the show due to conflicts with the cast and crew, very much like her previous work environment with Aaron Spelling on Beverley Hills 90210 in the early 90’s. After her departure from Charmed, Shannen remained a staple on television for both day and night throughout the early 2000’s into the early 2000-teens, even reprising her role as Brenda Walsh on the Beverley Hills 90210 sequel series 90210 in 2008, opposite another Beverley Hills alumni original, Jenny Garth.

I’ll never forget the very first time I saw Shannen Doherty. It was when the first episode of Charmed premiered in 1998. The first thing I noticed was she was this beautiful woman who had this charisma of performance that didn’t really feel like you were watching someone act, but just someone living their regular life and being their natural self. From then on I kept up with all her work and can honestly say she became a favorite of mines. I loved her appearance in Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back in 2001 when she played an actress in a Scream film because even though she wasn’t really in Scream she really fit the personality of the leading ladies who did. One of my favorite underrated horror movies ever is a witch thriller she starred in called Satan’s School For Girls, which was produced by frequent collaborator Aaron Spelling. I hate that she never got the recognition for how great that movie was.

As I got older I learned about Shannen’s infamous reputation for being the Hollywood bad girl. Shannen was known for conflicting a lot with her castmates and crew members on the set of the shows of which she starred. It was also known that some of these fights turned physical and played the biggest roles in why she left both Beverley Hills 90210 and Charmed. In the midst of it all she was also known for being a very kind and loving soul by many of those same co stars and collaborators. Shannen just had a very infectious spirit to say the least and on a personal level I really identified with how misunderstood she was.

Shannen was also known for being a fighter against a much greater battle against her breast cancer. It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that Shannen’s war against her cancer was the toughest obstacle she ever had to overcome and it definitely wouldn’t be a lie if someone told you that overcoming it was her greatest victory. Shannen was always a strong willed person, sometimes even to a fault, but that strong will is what gave her the strength to keep living whenever she was told by her doctors that she would soon be overcome by her cancer. Every time she was given an expiration date, she kept outliving the date because her mind was made up that she was not ready to go.

On July 13, 2024 Shannen quietly passed away and went home after a long war against her cancer. Everyone of us who loved her will never forget when we first heard the news. I was saddened when I first heard the news about this artist whom I’ve loved forever, but that sadness quickly changed into deep admiration for how courageous she was in this bout of a lifetime against her ailment. She never gave up, never felt sorry for herself and never threw in the towel everytime death came calling. I’ve made a conscious effort to listen binge watching Charmed on dvd and listen to the cover version of “How Soon Is Now” by Love Spit Love everyday as a means of remembering and honoring her everyday since she’s passed away, because she will always be an amazing artist and person who I’ll always love.

Even in the ugliest of times, Shannen was a beautiful soul and this was express’s through many of the people she had conflict with who have expressed their love and admiration for her in the time since she has passed. Shannen once said she wasn’t afraid to die from her cancer because she knew where she was going and she knew that she’d be reunited with all the people she loved. She also said that the only way she’d be afraid of death is if she wasn’t a good person and she knew she was a good person. Shannen Doherty was an amazing person who left an incredible mark on the world in which she walked and whether it be in life or death, everyone of us who loved her will be forever charmed that we got to know her spirit.

~~Dedicated to the loving memory of Shannen Maria Doherty (April 12, 1971-July 13, 2024).

“I am human and I need to be loved. Just like everybody else does” - How Soon Is Now.