It was just a few months ago that I got to interview Elaine Stritch, the Broadway legend whose irascible nature and coffee-stained voice made her a one-of-a-kind star. That was the second time I interviewed her, which I did for the documentary about her life that came out earlier this year. Both times were high-water marks in my career.
But I also got to do more than just talk to Elaine: I got to see her — onstage (in her acclaimed, Tony Award-winning one-woman show At Liberty and most recently on Broadway with Bernadette Peters in A Little Night Music) and once you’ve seen the old broad perform, your life is forever transformed.
She was a marvelous performer, a prickly human being and an unforgettable character … as well as a true friend of the gay community. The footlights are dimmer with her passing.
