Just the Facts
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Tuesday, July 30, 2013
Au Revoir, Eileen
Film blogger Edward Copeland reports the sad news that Eileen Brennan, “one of our most treasured character actresses, particularly when it came to roles with a comic spin, lost her battle with bladder cancer Sunday at 80.” Copeland adds that the Los Angeles-born performer “probably will be best remembered as Capt. Doreen Lewis in the 1980 comedy Private Benjamin opposite Goldie Hawn.” However, one of my first strong memories of Brennan comes from the 1978 Neil Simon comedy, The Cheap Detective, which starred Columbo’s Peter Falk as a Humphrey Bogart-ish private eye. To honor Brennan’s memory, then, I have installed above a clip of her from that picture, performing an offbeat rendition of “La Vie en Rose.”
READ MORE: “Eileen Brennan Passes On,” by Terence Towles Canote
(A Shroud of Thoughts); “Eileen Brennan, 1932-2013,” by Ryan (Wordsmithonia).
What a pro. She improved everything she was in.
ReplyDeleteBrilliant actress. People forgot her dramatic parts like those in THE STING and THE LAST PICTURE SHOW were just as good as her outrageous comedy roles. I loved her on Will and Grace as the overwrought and frustrated acting teacher who has to endure the talentless Jack in her classes. And her bizarre role as The Cat Lady in JEEPERS CREEPERS is one the reasons I recommend that under-appreciated horror movie.
ReplyDeleteThis is awesome!
ReplyDelete