gilda radner died 20 years ago today :(

on may 20, 1989, gilda radner lost her battle with ovarian cancer - she was just 42 years old. a founding cast member of the "not ready for primetime players" - a/k/a "saturday night live" - she was a comedy icon of late 70's television.

while her "weekend update" roseannadanna and her "never mind" tagline as emily litella are hilarious, my favorite radner performances were her unreal take-offs on patti smith! radner successfully moved most of her snl characters to the one woman show, "glida radner - live from new york" (which was released as a film and album).

in the 1980's she did a number of movies, including the one where she met, gene wilder - who went on to become her second husband.

coincidentally, there is a small connection to running in this post. every summer katie and i run a one mile fun run in greenburgh that raises funds for glida's club westchester (providing support for people battling cancer).

here is a great clip of gilda (or is it patti smith?) from her stage show:



rip: gilda radner