Don’t know how I missed this news from the BBC, Singin’ in the Rain being my favorite musical of all time with An American in Paris coming in a close second. When I was 6 years old the reason for my love of the movie was certainly not Debbie. No, it was Gene Kelly’s Ass! Pure and simple. Yes, I most definitely was born this way! But that’s a story for another time.
From BBC News:
Veteran screen star Debbie Reynolds is to be given a lifetime achievement award by the Screen Actors Guild (SAG), the organisation has announced. The 82-year-old, whose credits include Singin' In The Rain and TV sitcom Will and Grace, will receive her accolade at the SAG awards ceremony on 25 January.
Reynolds, mother of Star Wars actress Carrie Fisher, has also headlined a show at her own casino in Las Vegas. The award is the highest honour bestowed by the actors guild. It is given out each year to an individual who represents "the highest ideals of the acting profession".
SAG president Ken Howard called Reynolds, who has been in showbusiness for 66 years, "a tremendously talented performer with a diverse body of screen and stage work". "Her generous spirit and unforgettable performances have entertained audiences across the globe, moving us all from laughter to tears and back again," he added.
Reynolds kick-started her career at the age of 16 by winning the Miss Burbank competition, where she was spotted by film studio executives.She had apparently entered the contest with the hope of winning a blouse and a scarf.
The performer went on to appear in more than 50 movies, making her official screen debut in 1950. She was nominated for an Oscar for her lead role in The Unsinkable Molly Brown, while her other notable roles included The Tender Trap and, later in her career, as Liberace's mother in Behind The Candelabra (2013).
Reynolds also established a collection of Hollywood memorabilia containing hundreds of items, which was displayed at her Las Vegas hotel before being sold off to private collectors three years ago.
Anticipating retirement in 1979, she also opened a facility in Hollywood where performers could rehearse in comfort, which has been used by Cher, Michael Jackson and Johnny Depp. But the performer continued working, stating in a 2011 interview that she intends to keep going until she "kicks it".
Other figures who have received SAG's lifetime achievement honour over the years include Rita Moreno, who collected the award earlier this year, Shirley Temple, Elizabeth Taylor and James Cagney.
I am puzzled by something omitted from this story and that is, there is no mention of her Broadway musical “Irene” opening in 1973 where she had a three year run before the show went to London in 1976. An old friend was in that show and in the photo below. It is the original cast of Irene reunited for some reason. Friend Dennis is in the back row, second from the left. He's artistic director of his own theater company now. (As you can see, we share the same hairdo nowadays, too.) I am so proud of him I could burst.
I've mentioned this before; Dennis and I were born a few hours apart on the same day, same year, and until our mid-teens lived 10 houses away from one another in the same cul-de-sac, in New Orleans.
And so it goes.
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My earliest recollection of the lady was her record 'Tammy' ,which got to #2 here when I was 10. Never saw 'Singin/Rain' (nor 'American/Paris' - not with Debbie Reynolds, of course) in the cinema, only catching up later on TV.
ReplyDeleteDon't recall any talk about 'Irene' at all, though I should do as I'd have been becoming developing a keen interest in theatre and attendance therein around the time when you say it came to London. Strange that.
Anyway, pleased that the ol' gal is getting recognition for having had a darned good innings.
I love Debbie, I think she is a gem that often gets overlooked. I must say I just watched An American in Paris on my I pad flying to DC this past week and Singing in the Rain the last trip out to Florida...Gene Kelley's ass is just beautiful, period. I admit like you as a child my choice of favorite movies or actors had mostly to do with the men and how attracted I was to them and their ass had a lot to do with that, yep born this way too. Gene Kelly is beautiful all over and that ass is just icing on the cake.
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