“Clerks” Actress Lisa Spoonauer, 44, Dies in New Jersey

Lisa Spoonauer, the actress who played Caitlin Bree in the 1994 black-and-white cult classic “Clerks,” died Sunday in New Jersey. She was 44 years old.

The cause of death was not immediately clear.

According to her obituary, Spoonauer was born in Rahway, New Jersey and had lived in Jackson Township for the past six years, where she worked as a restaurant manager and event planner. Spoonauer maintained a low profile outside “Clerks,” only appearing in one other independent film – Gabe Torres‘s “Bartender.”

In a tribute to Spoonauer, “Clerks” director Kevin Smith said on Instagram that he was “captivated” when he first saw her acting.

“Lisa was easily the most natural and authentic voice in the room,” Smith said. “She didn’t sound like she was acting at all; she delivered scripted dialogue as if she was inventing her conversation in the moment, like people do in real life.”

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Several of Spoonauer’s co-stars voiced their grief on social media this week.

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