Marc Maron grieves 'horrendous loss' of his girlfriend, director Lynn Shelton

Over the weekend, independent filmmaker Lynn Shelton died unexpectedly at 54 years old from an unidentified blood disorder. Her boyfriend of a year, comedian Marc Maron, opened up about the "horrendous loss" in a gut-wrenching episode of his podcast, "WTF with Marc Maron," released Monday.

Shelton was known for her work writing and directing both TV and movies. Notable credits include the recent Hulu series "Little Fires Everywhere," Netflix's "Glow" and "Love," "Mad Men" and "The Mindy Project."

In his podcast, Maron, 56, shared that Shelton had been sick for some time and that on Thursday, he encouraged her to see a doctor. She'd tested negative for the coronavirus, so they thought she had strep throat. Shelton made an appointment to get blood tests on Friday, but the night before, she collapsed in the hallway.

"I got up, and she was on the floor, and she couldn't move," Maron recalled. "She was conscious but delirious a bit. I called 911 ... That was the last time I saw her alive ... on the floor, being taken away."

An ambulance drove her to the hospital around 5 a.m. Friday, and "by 12:45 a.m. Saturday, she was gone," he said.

Describing his relationship with Shelton, Maron said: "She was my partner, my girlfriend, my friend, and I loved her ... and she loved me, and I knew that. I don't know that I'd ever felt what I felt with her before — I do know, actually. I did not. I have not."

Shelton had "tremendous love for people," he added, "for her friends, her son, Milo. ... I got to tell you, no one's got anything bad to say about Lynn Shelton. ... Everyone who's worked with her loved her."

He continued: "I was definitely a better person when I was engaged with her, as a comic, as a guitar player, as a human, as a lover, as everything. I was better in Lynn Shelton's gaze. ... I lit her up. She lit me up. ... I loved everything about her. She was so good at everything."

In the episode, Maron also re-aired his August 2015 interview with Shelton, the first time they met. He recalled that afterward, he felt an immediate connection to her even though they were both in relationships at the time.

"When she left that day, I called up ... my producer, and I said, 'I don't know what just happened, man, but I could see some alternate reality that I was with her,'" he said. "That alternate reality became the reality for the past year."

After Shelton separated from her husband, Maron eventually decided to pursue his feelings because they were so strong, he recalled.

"The thought of her starting some other part of her life without me, now that she could, was just too much for me to handle, and I had to make a choice," he said. "I (told) her, 'If I don't try to honor my feelings for you, I'll regret it for the rest of my life.'"

"It was the greatest decision I ever made, and I don't have any regrets about it," Maron continued. "Whatever she gave me, it's going to stick, and it'll elevate me for the rest of my life once I get past this horrendous loss."

Over the weekend, many of her collaborators, from "Knocked Up" director Judd Apatow to "Little Fires Everywhere" co-stars Reese Witherspoon and Kerry Washington, shared their condolences.

%3Cblockquote%20class=%22twitter-tweet%22%3E%3Cp%20lang=%22en%22%20dir=%22ltr%22%3ELynn%20Shelton.%20You%20walked%20into%20my%20life%20and%20immediately%20changed%20me%20for%20the%20better.%20What%20an%20inspiration!!!!%20Your%20vision.%20Your%20enthusiasm%20for%20life.%20Your%20fiercely%20independent%20spirit.%20Your%20humor%20and%20love%20and%20dedication.%20As%20an%20artist.%20A%20mother.%20A%20director.%20A%20co-conspirator.%20A%20light.%20%3Ca%20href=%22https://t.co/MAmf7clrrB%22%3Epic.twitter.com/MAmf7clrrB%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E—%20kerry%20washington%20(@kerrywashington)%20%3Ca%20href=%22https://twitter.com/kerrywashington/status/1261827770683805696?ref_src=twsrc%255Etfw%22%3EMay%2017,%202020%3C/a%3E%3C/blockquote%3E%20%3Cscript%20async%20src=%22https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js%22%20charset=%22utf-8%22%3E%3C/script%3E

"You walked into my life and immediately changed me for the better. What an inspiration!!!!" Washington tweeted. "Your vision. Your enthusiasm for life. Your fiercely independent spirit. Your humor and love and dedication. As an artist. A mother. A director. A co-conspirator. A light."

Shelton is survived by son Milo Seal, husband of many years Kevin Seal, her parents, two brothers, one sister and Maron.