BREAKING: Linda Lavin Dies

Clearly grief stricken over the loss of Jimmy Carter.

Ba-da-ba-ba-baaaaa....

Died of lung cancer, according to her wikipedia page.

OH MY GOD!!! A DL LEGEND!

And so the triumvirate is complete:

Olivia, Dayle, and now dear Linda.

She was not an actor she was an ACTRESS.

And she *just* finished filming the Mid Century Modern show with Matt Bomer and Nathan Lane.

Lovely lady. I'll miss her.

BOPPITY BOP, BITCHES!

Well, Kiss Mag Grits!!!!

I just posted this on the GYPSY thread...

That leaves only the Flo and her alternates alive from the "Alice" cast: Polly Holliday, Celia Weston and Diane Ladd.

2024 is determined to fuck us deeper and harder than any other year...

Awww, always liked her

Bwahahahahahahahhhhh.

I mean, rest in peace.

Hearing aids on Broadway will be muffled in her memory.

[quote] 2024 is determined to fuck us deeper and harder than any other year...

Really? I see this more as its gift to us...

Consider them grits kissed!

Alice doesn't live h̶e̶r̶e̶ anymore.

Don't be such a cunt, Polly.

I’m going to miss that FRESH FRECKLED FACE!!!

Life's too short...

I met her in a restaurant once.

[quote] Alice doesn't live h̶e̶r̶e̶ anymore.

THE HELL I DON’T!!!

[quote]R21 I’m going to miss that FRESH FRECKLED FACE!!!

[italic]There’s a FRESH freckled face at the PEARL-ee-hee-hee gates…

The Simpsons called her evil.

Famous deaths usually come in three's at the end of a year. One more to go.

DL should really be in all black tomorrow with an "In Loving Memory" banner.

No one could survive today on a Diner waitress’s salary.

R27, see R5.

Aww! She just had a supporting role in the new Lisa Kudrow Netflix series, No Good Deed. She played a very good nosy neighbor.

My first favorite actress! I named my first goldfish after her, and when I woke up the next day and ran to go check on my new pet, my older brother sat me down and explained she had died overnight. Then he showed me it's body, neatly kept in a folded paper towel. I was 3.

Now Linda has gone the way of my fish. Just as she was enjoying a bit of a career resurgence. Glad she went on a high note, likely scatting to the end.

[quote] There’s a FRESH freckled face at the PEARL-ee-hee-hee gates…

Do Jews go to heaven?

What does three possess?

RIP!

I always wondered if she ever visited here. I could see her either preparing one hell of a lawsuit, laughing her ass off, or shrugging and thinking, "Well, at least I'm not Bonnie Franklin."

It doesn't get much better than this.

The last of the red hot Lavins.

Boppity bop!

Oh my god! Not Linda! I can’t stomach this!

Trim your own fat, bitch.

How can she look so good in that picture taken December 4, 2024 and then be dead not even a month later?

[quote] Now Linda has gone the way of my fish.

She has gone the way of all fish.

She used to be sad

She used to be shy

And until earlier today

She used to be alive

R39 is not R9 aka god.

Pat Heaton has now been elevated to Head Hollywood Cunt.

She was filming two weeks ago, and is now dead from cancer already?

I am still mourning the death of Lanvin.

Aww RIP lady. Blow a kiss, take a bow.

R47 yes, the article says her death was a very unexpected one, though she had recently been diagnosed with lung cancer.

Linda Lavin-who’s next? Trump I hope.

Oh no. I always liked her. Lung cancer, too. How awful. R.I.P. 🙏

You, lying' murdin' son of a bitch! You took from me the only thing I ever loved in the whole world -my Linda!

She killed MANY television series.

Is she the Farrah or the Michael Jackson?

Has FLorence Jean Castleberry commented yet?

She was tone deaf to the end.

Very tacky to die on the same day as Jimmy Carter.

[quote]Oh my god! Not Linda! I can’t stomach this!

Keep the box of straws away from r40! MARY!

She died of sudden grief knowing that she was, in fact, the woman for whom Jimmy Carter lusted in his heart.

I saw her in Gypsy. She was not as bad as everyone says she was.

R59 is Blanche Devereaux

[quote]R25 [italic]There’s a FRESH freckled face at the PEARL-ee-hee-hee gates [/italic]

[quote]R33 Do Jews go to heaven?

Right - maybe she’s at the River Styx? (I don’t know what Those People get up to… I’m just an aspiring piano bar singer. Ba ba ba DAH dah…)

LL:"There's a NEW girl in town! And she's lookin' good! There's a FRESH FRECKLED FACE in the —"

St. Peter: "Shut the fuck up, Linda."

I LOVED her as Meadow Soprano’s therapist. “Does DAD touch you?” ……. Also as Carey’s Parole Lady on The Good Wife.

Reunited with my beloved Tawmy!

She was brilliant in The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife, expertly layering the character’s existential despair beneath the outrageous humor. Her voice was beautifully expressive and I adored her physicality. RIP.

A perky young Linda sings "You've Got Possibilities".

[quote]R64 I LOVED her as Meadow Soprano’s therapist. “Does DAD touch you?”

YES!

Tawwwwmy also died in December, 5 years ago! Celia Weston...keep yourself in Saran Wrap when December 2029 rolls along

Is Polly Holliday the only regular left alive from Alice? To be honest, I thought she was already dead too.

She looked great at Sarah Paulson’s 50th birthday party 2 weeks ago.

Polly has outlived every cast member of Alice and The Golden Girls. She's so ancient she played the old lady in Gremlins 40 years ago!

Mel's chili did her in!

There’s not enough room in hell for Bonnie Franklin AND Linda Lavin.

How long does the official DL mourning period last?

Are we allowed to wear dark grey? Or is it strictly black?

R72 but wasn’t she in her 40s when she played the old woman?

She thought she had a hot voice but she couldn't scat forever.

[quote]My first favorite actress! I named my first goldfish after her… I was 3.

I’ve heard of baby gays but this is ridiculous

Fuck it. I'm moving to purple on Wednesday -I don't care who died!

You have to wear a pink diner waitress’ uniform, r75, with a pencil in your ear, a stupid hat and a giant greeting card looking contraption that is actually a nametag.

[Quote] That leaves only the Flo and her alternates alive

Um. . .HELLO?!?

Um. . .GOODBYE!

Never liked her.

Fling a box of straws in her memory, and know she's assassinating "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy?" in hell with Martha Raye ...

[quote]Linda Lavin-who’s next? Trump I hope.

Jack Nicholson, you in danger, gurl.

R81... you dead baby

[quote] She thought she had a hot voice but she couldn't scat forever.

Scat, did somebody say scat?

Quick, get me a glass coffee table.

Early to Rise

Early to Bed

In and between I cooked and cleaned

And went Outta My Head

And then I was DEAD

Good!

Variety obit

Her Off Broadway debut was in a 1964 play titled KISS MAMA…

No, thank you!

Sad news. If she was having surgery and/or chemo for her lung cancer, it may have been too.much for an 87-year-old. I can hear her saying, “Look doc, I’m booked from here to 2026. Cut it all out, and blast me with chemo!” May she rest in peace.

She was a cunt.

Linda sings Sondheim.

R92 I agree. My mother had lung cancer. The treatment killed her before the lung cancer even had a chance.

She was a decade past the average woman's life expectancy.

And wore out her welcome 40 years ago.

Linda in her first (and only?) TV special with Lynn Redgrave, Anthony Newley and one time husband Ron Liebman

Andrea did it better.

Doing her sultry best to wreck the home of Kate Lawrence of Pasadena in 1977.

It's possible R51 =

[quote]Pat Heaton has now been elevated to Head Hollywood Cunt.

R46: And has spoken.

Wise to cast an 87-year-old in a pilot?

^The critics predicted the show would be dead before Linda…

The Hollywood Reporter.

Did Tooawmy die of AIDS?

She took the face god gave her and worked it and made the best of it!

Fuck you, R13!

R53, I am impressed. VERY well done.

She showed up & worked it

[quote]Famous deaths usually come in three's

Oh, dear.

[quote]Then he showed me it's body

Oh, dear!

Definitely the Farrah, R55.

Even before there was a DL, I always thought that Linda Lavin and Bonnie Franklin were the two most annoying sitcom actresses on television. And now they're both gone.

I hate to burstyn everyone’s bubble but there was a real honest to gods Oscar won here

R6, America survived going from policeman to police office, mailman to letter carrier, fireman to fire fighter, waiter/waitress to server, etc.

I remember being scolded as a child about the inappropriate nature of the word kid (Kids are goats, not people!) — language evolves and adapts.

Actour?

sad. Alice was one of my fave childhood tv shows.

I didn't realize that Lavin and Polly Holliday were the same age. I guess that makes Holliday the last remaining original main cast member of Alice.

I hope she meets Bonnie Franklin in the afterlife. RIP.

[quote]How can she look so good in that picture taken December 4, 2024 and then be dead not even a month later?

I'm funny that way.

[quote] I hope she meets Bonnie Franklin in the afterlife. RIP.

Bonnie will be running to the door to greet her.

This is going to break Datalounge

OMG! I was just watching her in "No Good Deed!" on Netflix. She looked great.

She's (no longer) got possibilities!

[quote]a giant greeting card looking contraption that is actually a nametag.

As a child, I was fascinated by those nametags. They were so glamorous!

She was so good singing “Possibilities” on Broadway back in the ‘60s.

She annoyed me on television while I was growing up, but I was floored by her onstage. The first time I saw her (with a TKTS ticket bought in the lobby of the WTC) was as Mrs. Van Daan in The Diary of Anne Frank. Over the course of the play, her clothes became more threadbare and her body wilted with the accumulating weight of living in hiding. When the Germans entered the attic, she let out this silent whole body scream that still haunts me.

I was on the street when she exited the theater and wanted to say something, but she was covered in a shawl and hurried into her car.

Gum snapping, roughborn, no nonsense, hon-luv-guysgal, hashslingin’, a shimmer of a ray of light on a cloudy day Alice

[quote]Tawwwwmy also died in December, 5 years ago! Celia Weston...keep yourself in Saran Wrap when December 2029 rolls along

She also died just two days before the 9th Anniversary of co-star Beth Howland's death (December 31, 2015).

Reminds me of Cloris Leachman who died on January 27, 2021 - just two days after the fourth anniversary of her costar Mary Tyler Moore's death (January 25, 2017).

She was just passing through, but things worked out and she stayed a while.

On two different television shows, Lavin was a 'guest star' and nearly stole the show from the rest of the cast.

50 years ago, on the 7th episode of the the first season of 'Rhoda', Lavin guest starred as her rich high school classmate Linda Monroe who is accidentally invited to Rhoda's bridal shower. In minutes, she manages to insult everyone gathered at the shower and bring all the attention on herself. The studio audience went wild with laughter - Lavin perfected the snobbery of a Manhattan socialite. CBS wanted to bring her in as a regular co-star (who moves into Rhoda's building after a divorce), but supposedly Harper didn't think it was a good idea, afraid she would steal the show away from her (the star). Realizing her comedic talent, CBS offered her the role of 'Alice' two years later. Nearly 30 years later, Harper replaced Lavin on Broadway in 'Tales of the Allergist's Wife'. She was funnier on that one ep of 'Rhoda' than she was during her run on 'Alice'.

Lavin stole the show again in the final season of 'The Good Wife' when she played a probation officer during one of the story arcs on the show. Her banter with costar Christine Baranski was hilarious. IIRC, it won Lavin an Emmy nod for 'best guest appearance' on a series.

Both episodes are worth watching.

Our dl Goddess singing the song for the pilot with the boy who played tommy in the movie.

Oh God, first we lost Bonnie, and now this. There's literally nothing left to live for at this point.

She was electrifying on stage. I loved her two hander with Sarah Paulson, Collected Stories. I also loved her period as Nicky Silvers’ muse in The Lyons and Too Much Sun. She will be missed.

Our Gal Val has ascended to the number one spot on The DL.

I loved her “Aw shucks” delivery in the first few years of Alice. She would have been great in a Frank Capra movie. At times, that character was like a female Jimmy Stewart.

She also had the luck of being married to hunky Ron Leibman.

[QUOTE] She was just passing through, but things worked out and she stayed a while.

Yes, she'll be staying on. In an Urn above the fireplace.

r36 Your "Well, at least I'm not Bonnie Franklin." made me laugh - thanks for that. I think that should be on the official DL t-shirt.

Did Alice ever have Tommy tested?

r138 For STDs?

Has Polly Holiday released a statement yet?

Tommy....the brain of a squirrel, a dick like a firehose.

Patricia Heston paid a nice tribute to her on Twitter

r141 / r138 Tommy really did look like he had some good junk in this old prank video.

Linda and Martha Raye are probably now performing "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy" for the angels in heaven.

IS she dead to you, OP, you pushy cunt who can't do anything right?

R142 yes and it was unwelcome & unfounded

Just passing through but if I find some good hard dick I just might stay for a while

There's a DEAD girl in town . . .

You people killed her with what you said.

You know it's true.

[quote]Goin’ through life with tit clamps on it’s hard to pee - -

The best thing about Alice is that she gave birth to big-dicked Tommy.

[quote]Has Polly Holiday released a statement yet?

Too busy celebrating with Diane Ladd.

Despite being a rotten MAGA at the end young Philip/Tommy really was the fantasy late 70s/early 80s guy. Dumb as a box of rocks and blessed with an enormous schvanstucker.

Only on DL would the death thread for an actress turn into a discussion about her TV son's fuck stick.

[quote] Only on DL would the death thread for an actress turn into a discussion about her TV son's fuck stick.

Her DEAD TV son's fuck stick, no less.

But what a fuck stick it is.....er, was.

[quote]Only on DL would the death thread for an actress turn into a discussion about her TV son's fuck stick.

It's in the most difficult times that DLers try to bring us together with thoughts of better days.

R130 Linda Lavin also guest starred on an episode of "Phyllis," playing a friend whose husband also died and who comes to stay with Phyllis for a while.

Within days, she gets a fantastic job in San Francisco and meets a handsome bachelor, pissing off Phyllis big time.

So this is what it feels like when DL sits shiva.

I never gave her much thought until I became a DLer. Now, i love her to a ridiculous degree. Godspeed, DL legend!

Let’s have a duet.

Disne Ladd is having one hell of a party today!

What will now happen with her new TV sitcom MIDCENTURY MODERN with Matt Bomer and Nathan Lane? Will they recast her role and start all over again or write her death into the story line?

Who could possibly replace Lind Lavin?

[quote]Only on DL would the death thread for an actress turn into a discussion about her TV son's fuck stick.

Look at the photo and you'll see why.

We also can't forget Linda's recurring role in the first two seasons of Barney Miller. She played Det. Wentworth, "an overeager female cop." The one thing that stands out is a bit of hamminess where Wentworth loudly let out some rage into her purse rather than let everyone see how she felt.

It's time for my triumphant comeback, R161!

Eldergays and eldergays at heart, PLEASE let this thread make it all the way to 600 posts. It's what Linda would have wanted.

R161 I'm available!

Eighty-Fucking-Seven years old and still working and performing . God love her.

If DL is looking for succor during these dark days, I'm still around.

R161, Judith Light replaced her for the Broadway transfer of Other Desert Cities and won a Tony. She’s a spry 75.

Uh, only in Judith Light's mind is she 75, spry or not.

I'd forgotten Lavin was in Other Desert Cities.

If Stockard Channing hadn't ruined her face she'd be a good replacement for Lavin, who only ruined her nose.

She was like the waitress I never had. Godspeed, in your beige wedgies!

Lavin was a fantastic actress--always doing a superlative job on stage or screen.

She never got the recognition she deserved--likely held back back everyone seeing her as TV's Alice.

[quote]Who could possibly replace Lind Lavin?

Poll Holiday?

Dian Ladd??

Celi Weston???

She died of a hidden lung cancer.

Was she a smoker or is she one of the few nonsmokers to get cancer?

.....

What fascinated DL about Linda was that she was doing a stupid sitcom and yet she always wanted to experiment, by performing scat which the theme song from year to year (which no one enjoyed) and by regularly having ehr character disguise herself as a male mobster (which no one thought was funny or convincing). Also, she was pretty self-righteous when she'd talk about how important her sitcom was (which is highly debatable) or what a serious performer she was.

On the other hand, unlike Bonnie Franklin, she was a genuinely talented singer--just not on the show's theme song. And she was quite a good actress on stage.

[quote] Who could possibly replace Lind Lavin?

Patt Lupone?

Don't hate me for this datalounge people but for me the saddest death this year is that heterosexual

RICHARD SIMMONS

Saw her multiple times on stage, including her last play, You Will Get Sick, Off-Broadway. She was always terrific. To me this is a bigger loss than Jimmy Carter.

R174- I agree. She was appeared on an episode of Law And Order: Criminal Intent as an Orthodox Jewish Mother with a wimpy son and she ends of having the non Jewish daughter in law murdered. She was so good and ruthless in that role.

Going through life with blinders on, it's tough to SEE.

I had to get up, get out from under, and look for ME.

There's a new girl in town and she's looking GOOD!

There's a FRESH freckled face, in the neighborHOOD.

[quote] by performing scat

Stealth poo thread

Link at R151 requires an account and password!

[quote] She never got the recognition she deserved--

???

She won a Tony (and had five Tony nominations), two Golden Globes, three Drama Desk awards, and two Obies. And she was nominated for two Emmys. Plus she was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame. That's quite a lot of recognition by almost any standard.

What more did she deserve--the Nobel Peace Prize?

[quote]she was doing a stupid sitcom and yet she always wanted to experiment, by performing scat

OH WOW!

TELL ME MORE! TELL ME MORE!!!!

Is there any way to get Linda featured in the Oscars In Memoriam segment? Should we start a petition on Change.Org?

[quote] To me this is a bigger loss than Jimmy Carter.

Spoken like a true Datalounger!

You Will Get Sick was only the last in a long number of mediocre to dreadful NY plays of the past 20 years that were elevated by Lavin's presence. The kind of actor who could get a laugh effortlessly with the raising of an eyebrow. Just one eyebrow.

Impeccable timing.

R188 Well, she did have a part in the Oscar nominated "Being the Ricardos," so maybe.

This one hurts.

[quote]Well, she did have a part in the Oscar nominated "Being the Ricardos," so maybe.

Don't forget The Muppets Take Manhattan!

Disney Ladd

R144 is not R84.

But seriously, she wrapped Mid Century Modern like ten days ago. That cancer either was hiding low key or it was discovered and grew QUICK.

[Quote] Then he showed me it's body, neatly kept in a folded paper towel. I was 3.

[Quote] Now Linda has gone the way of my fish.

We’re going to need a bigger paper towel.

I like that suggestion, R179, only please let there be a camera in the room to record the look on Patti's face when she's told she'd be great as Nathan Lane's mother.

Low key

I wonder how Linda will be commemorated in the 2025 TCM Remembers reel. The Muppets Take Manhattan or Being the Ricardos?

She also had the luck of being married to hunky Ron Leibman.

One of the most hated men in Hollywood.

R196 My mother had been slowing down and having breathing problems. We took her to the doctor, where an X-ray revealed she had advanced lung cancer.

She was gone within a month of her diagnosis.

Lung cancer can lurk for years, and people often don't know they've got it until it's too late.

Faye Dunaway will be next. I fear that will be the end of DL.

Who will we worship then? Sydney Sweeney?

The New York Times obit

[Quote] Is she the Farrah or the Michael Jackson?

She’s the Gary Coleman.

I had the great pleasure to work with Linda as a backstage technician when she did summer stock in Lake Forest Illinois in 1973. I felt so honored when she told me to get out of her way, loser.

[Quote] Who will we worship then?

Thoughts and prayers.

“ There's a new girl in town!”

Losing Teri Garr and Linda Lavin in one year?! DL really is going to have to start the canonization process for some new blood.

[quote]“Working with Linda was one of the highlights of our careers,” Mid-Century Modern creators David Kohan, Max Mutchnick and Jimmy Burrows said in a statement. “She was a magnificent actress, singer, musician, and a heat seeking missile with a joke. But more significantly, she was a beautiful soul. Deep, joyful, generous and loving. She made our days better. The entire staff and crew will miss her beyond measure. We are better for having known her.”

[quote]Added 20th Television and Hulu: “Our deepest and heartfelt condolences go to Linda Lavin’s family and loved ones. She was a legend in our industry, bringing her tremendous talent to audiences for over seven decades. She will be forever missed by her Mid-Century Modern family, as we mourn this incredible loss together.”

R201 Never heard that he was hated - why was that?

Patti LuPone is still with us and cunting away.

I didn't like her character as the psychiatrist (Meadow's) in the Sopranos.

Speaking of large fuck sticks, a reminder that Mo Rocca asked Linda the important question a few years ago as to the Alice theme song.

Tawmmy, giving mom her foot bath in heaven!

[quote] What more did she deserve--the Nobel Peace Prize?

Yes, she received many acting accolades, but the public never regarded her as a big star. Hardly anyone ever thought, "I've got to get tickets to that show because Linda Lavin is in it!"

She never got a Kennedy Center Honor.

I wonder if she belted "there's a new girl in town" when she walked through the pearly gates

Hardly anyone ever thought, "I've got to get tickets to that show because Linda Lavin is in it!"

Charles Busch made a snarky response to someone saying Linda had a triumph in Tale of the Allergists Wife. He said she only triumphed because of the material he gave her to perform.

She was good as the old bitch head of the coop board who was murdered in an episode of Elsbeth.

r220 Charles Busch is very unfortunate looking - mostly that atrocious hairstyle.

Do you recall where he said that? I've read several articles about the play in which he was very complimentary of her. Just curious

What does Meadow possess?

R203: I'll never stop talking about dead divas as if they're still alive, vows DL.

R215. Mo Rocca is so hot. He can stay a while in my "diner" anytime.

Alice was quick with a joke or to light up your smoke but the rub and the tug ain’t coming free

I never would've guessed Flo outlives Alice and Vera.

And both Flos at that, R227!

Thank you, R228.

I'm glad to hear that Flo is still alive. I love those Progressive commercials!

Linda archived a ton of her TV movies, talk show appearances, guest shots and even her own variety special on Youtube. Linda Lavin Official. It's a nice rabbit hole if you're looking for something to do for an hour or two.

Here's Linda winning the Golden Globe for Alice

[quote] Who could possibly replace Linda Lavin?

R161 Andrea Martin

Too nice.

Nancy McKeon posted a nice tribute on her Instagram page

I assume she had a nose job in her youth but it's only in the later elder photos of Linda where her nose actually looks broken on the bridge. Anyone else notice that? I wonder what happened?

Please, no jokes about Flo and a fondue pot.

Jimmy Carter is getting Farrahed by Linda on the DL

R231. Did she win her Globe for the episode she dressed as a rabbit or as the male lounge singer?

[quote] Linda Lavin Died With 3 Episodes Left to Shoot for New Hulu Comedy Series ‘Mid-Century Modern’

Linda Lavin, who died Sunday at age 87, passed away with just three episodes left to shoot for her new Hulu comedy series, “Mid-Century Modern.”

Lavin, whose death resulted from complications of recently discovered lung cancer, was set to star in the upcoming sitcom from “Will & Grace” creators Max Mutchnick and David Kohan alongside stars Matt Bomer, Nathan Lane and Nathan Lee Graham.

“Mid-Century Modern,” which is also executive produced by Ryan Murphy, had shot seven of its 10 episodes, and had planned on resuming production for its remaining three episodes in mid-January, according to an individual with knowledge of the series’ plans. It’s unknown how Lavin’s passing might impact the show, which was ordered to series in August.

“Working with Linda was one of the highlights of our careers,” Kohan, Mutchnick and Jimmy Burrows wrote in a joint statement of Lavin’s passing. “She was a magnificent actress, singer, musician, and a heat seeking missile with a joke. But more significantly, she was a beautiful soul. Deep, joyful, generous and loving. She made our days better. The entire staff and crew will miss her beyond measure. We are better for having known her.”

“Our deepest and heartfelt condolences go to Linda Lavin’s family and loved ones. She was a legend in our industry, bringing her tremendous talent to audiences for over seven decades,” a spokesperson for 20th Television and Hulu said in a statement. “She will be forever missed by her ‘Mid-Century Modern’ family, as we mourn this incredible loss together.”

In the multi-cam comedy, Lavin played Sybil Schneiderman, the mother of Lane’s Bunny Schneiderman who is described as “critical, smothering and amoral.” The series follows the Bunny and his best friends (played by Bomer and Lee Graham), “who, after an unexpected death, decide to spend their golden years living together in Palm Springs where the wealthiest one lives with his mother,” per the official logline.

Produced by 20th Television, “Mid-Century Modern” is executive produced by Mutchnick, Kohan, Burrows, Lane, Bomer and Murphy. Mutchnick and Kohan wrote the pilot and Burrows serves as director.

I think Flo is the last of the Alice cast to remain alive.

Even Phillip McKeon died

R239 is waking up after 48 hours.

Is Celia Weston dead?

F&F this thread for inappropriate and disrespectful caption -- this is not how Datalounge honors its legends. Please refer to link to see how to do it properly.

Charles Busch posted a beautiful memorial for her on social media:

It was a genuine privilege to know and work with Linda Lavin. In 1998, or somethin’ like that, I was just starting to write “The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife,” my first contemporary play that wasn’t an homage to a classic film or theatrical genre. I’d seen Linda starring in the Off-Broadway play, “Death Defying Acts,” and, dazzled, wrote the play with her in mind. Lynne Meadow, the artistic director of Manhattan Theater Club had expressed an interest in working with me. When I finished the play, I sent it to Lynne, who shocked me in not insisting that I submit to the torture of “ play development.” She wanted to arrange a reading of the play right away and asked who my dream leading lady would be. I replied, “Linda Lavin.” To my relief, Linda agreed to the reading. The actors sat at a long table in a rehearsal room and there was the usual small audience of friends and staff. Now, I am sure that Linda did not prepare for this reading. But my God, she gave the most full extraordinary performance. Yes, hysterically funny, but moving and full of colors. At one point, and this is unheard of in a cold reading, she got out of her chair, her face full of rage, and crossed to the window as the actress reading her combative elderly mother did a long accusatory speech. It was riveting. When the reading was over, Lynne and I rushed over to Linda, showering her with praise. Like puppies, we begged, “So will you do the play?” Linda pursed her lips, “Mmmm, I dunno. This is something I really have to ponder.” She pondered for nine months, vacillating if she wanted to commit to the play. Marjorie Taub was an enormous demanding role with one raging aria after another. Linda, having just begun her romance with Steve Bakunas, who would shortly become her husband, wasn’t sure she wanted to work that hard. I refused to give up on Linda. She’d be dining at Joe Allen, and I just happened to be there. I followed her to LA where she was appearing in the play, “Collected Stories” and had lunch with her at Orso, imploring her to appear in “The Allergist’s Wife.” I wrote her shamelessly excessive love letters comparing her to Bernhardt and Duse and our relationship as akin to Dante and Beatrice. I finally wore her down and we went into production in 1999. (cont.)

(cont.) Stone by stone she laid down a foundation of honest emotion for each scene. Once I asked her if it had been horribly depressing appearing eight times a week in “The Diary of Anne Frank.” She said it wasn’t difficult in performance. It was the rehearsals that were harrowing because that’s where she was exploring her feelings of terror. A visitor to our rehearsal room would’ve assumed Linda was working on scenes from Ibsen or Strindberg. One doesn’t have that kind of ability to dive into a chasm of emotion without being something of a complex personality offstage. During a tech rehearsal, I was seated in the theater next to our set designer, Santo Loquasto. The actors were on a break and Santo and I observed Linda seated on the edge of the stage, lost in thought. She had no idea we were watching and within sixty seconds her finely boned face registered a myriad of subtle emotions. Santo whispered, “Look at her. She’s absolutely fascinating.” During that final week and a half in the rehearsal room, Linda began flirting with the comic elements in the play and then brought it to magnificent full bloom, with a comic precision as sharp as a surgeon’s scalpel. From the first performance, the audiences were wildly enthusiastic. While we were in previews, Linda read a negative review in the Times of a fellow actor who the critic lambasted for being “over the top.” Linda, for all of her confidence in her abilities, was sure that she’d be next on the frying pan. At the next performance, she completely changed her characterization and brought the entire evening into a sort of quite melancholy. I was horrified. When I went backstage afterwards, ashen, I was confronted with Linda, full of excitement, saying “Wasn’t it great? It really worked.” I’m sure she picked up on my horror. We said no more. She went back to her original take on the role. But a few nights later, the legendary producer/director, Hal Prince, came to the show. He was a great friend of Linda’s and her mentor. I thought, if he tells her she’s over the top, we’re screwed. Well, he flipped over her and the play and gave her the confidence to fly. And so she did and received yet another Tony nomination. In 2019, Linda phoned me full of enthusiasm. Her idea was to celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the play with a one night Actor’s Fund Reading. Linda hardly looked a day older, so I assumed she’d play Marjorie, but no, her idea was that I should play Marjorie and Since Shirl Bernheim, who created the role of the mother had died years before, Linda would play the mother. Marjorie wasn’t a role I ever fantasized playing. I had seen it done as good as I ever could have dreamed. But this was an opportunity to be on stage with Linda. She got the rest of the original cast, Michele Lee, Tony Roberts and Anil Kumar on board and Lynne Meadow returned to direct and gave us MTC’s Broadway house, the Friedman. It was the most glorious experience to act with Linda. Even holding the script in hand, she was so in the moment and emotionally present. My goal was to ride with her and share in the spontaneity. It was an experience I truly will never forget. I will never forget you, Linda, your brilliance, your enthusiasm, your humor, your complexity, your beautiful relationship with Steve Bakunas. What a cool marriage. It was an inspiration to witness how you and Steve kept reinventing your lives. One chapter after another. Wilmington, North Carolina, Costa Rica, Los Angeles. By your example, you gave us all lessons in acting and more importantly living. Thank you.

R241 No.

Polly Holliday is the last surviving member of the original "Alice" cast.

R245 fuck that then.

[quote] It must be frustrating for actors to be mainly identified with one role, even if that role made them a star

Prediction for the next three celebrity deaths- Susan Olsen, Johnny Depp, and Richard Jenkins.

RIP Mrs. Hyatt. There aren’t too many TV moms left from my 70s childhood. God protect Mrs. Partridge, Mrs. Cunningham, Mrs. Walton, and Mrs Ingalls.

Meadow is the name of a character on the Sopranos and she possesses a psychiatrist.

What's on her Victrola?

R251, The RCA Victor press of "Two Tootsies from Tucson"

Met her years ago at a big ASCAP dinner. She spoke about how passionately she supported union workers, and then sang, "Anything Goes."

R249. If Miss Shirley Jones could survive Jack Cassidy AND Marty Ingalls, she will live forever.

Major cockhound, huge Trump supporter

[quote]What's on her Victrola?

It better [bold]not[/bold] be "Dim All the Lights"...

Lee Grant to replace Linda in MidCentury Modern.

R243 I was about to post that, glad you did.

From Paul Rudnick - the starred emphasis below is mine:

"RIP Linda Lavin, at 87. She possessed something only the greatest stars enjoy: direct communication with adoring audiences. She found enormous success on TV and increasingly, in movies, but any stage appearance was a blissful event. I first saw her when my parents brought me to see two Broadway shows: the first was THE MAD SHOW, a revue based on material from Mad magazine, in which Linda introduced "The Boy From...", a bossa nova parody written by Stephen Sondheim and Mary Rodgers. Next up was IT'S A BIRD... IT'S A PLANE...IT'S SUPERMAN, where Linda was, if I remember correctly, a secretary named Sydney who sang "You've Got Possibilities." In both cases, Linda electrified: I was very young, but I fell hopelessly in love. She was supremely funny and joyously seductive, leading the enraptured audience wherever she wanted it to go.

Her legend only grew, in plays like Neil Simon's BROADWAY BOUND, Charles Busch's TALE OF THE ALLERGIST'S WIFE and Nicky Silver's THE LYONS. Writers adored Linda, for her matchless comic technique, her emotional range and the fact that she was recognizably Jewish with a New York sensibility (even after being raised in Portland, Maine.) I was lucky enough to work with her in my play THE NEW CENTURY at Lincoln Center. In the opening scene she played the mother of many LGBTQ+ kids, and she ruled. Every syllable and gesture were honed, perfected and subject to change, as she calibrated the crowd's response. Watching her rehearse was sinfully pleasureable and, of course, a master class. She was appearing opposite Jayne Houdyshell and Peter Bartlett, two majestic comic powerhouses, and I loved how these three performers respected and navigated each other. ***Linda had a take-no-prisoners reputation, which she acknowledged***, but she was nothing but warm, inventive and ultra-professional.

There was a moment in the final scene, where Jayne, playing a midwesterner named Barbra Ellen asked Linda, as Helene, if she was Jewish. Helene said, "I resent your assumption. Just because someone is critical and articulate and always hungry - fine, I'm Jewish." At every performance, by the time Linda said the word "hungry", the audience was convulsed. I never intended this as a punchline, but Linda's delivery was, as always, sublime, and the audience wouldn't stop laughing. Linda was seated; she'd rifle through her handbag, check her makeup, turn her head slightly - the howling only increased. One night after the show I asked Linda what she thought about during this tsunami, as the audience worshipped her. She thought about it and replied, "I just think, I'm pretty, I'm funny." And oh my God, she was."

I am of course honored to assume the cultural position of Bonnie Franklin and Linda Lavin for the next generation of Datalounge as "Best known irritating TV mother everyone acutely remembers but not fondly."

[quote]and then sang, "Anything Goes."

While you were standing there, R253?

From Nicky Silver, who wrote The Lyons (Linda played one of the leads):

[quote] Linda Lavin has died and the world is abruptly darker. She was simply a brilliant and spectacular actor. I did two plays with Linda-- three rehearsal periods, including The Lyons transfer-- and I mean it when I say I enjoyed every second I spent in her presence. Michael Esper and I would leave rehearsal and laugh and laugh, reliving her best moments of the day. I want to share a quick story. The Lyons was running on Broadway and Linda's final moment in the play was a kind of aria of liberation, at the end of which she threw her handbag over her shoulder and strode from the room. Well, one performance the shoulder strap on the bag broke and it went flying across the stage. (She still got her applause break, of course.) I rushed backstage after the curtain call to make sure she wasn't too upset. Her first words to me were "Wasn't that exciting!" She wasn't angry or upset, she was alive with joy. You see, Linda Lavin loved the stage. Always present, always alive, always connected in a profound way. Her timing was uncanny; her depth was simply unparalleled. Linda could find the pain in any joke, and she could find the joke in any pain. She was pure genius and I thought she would live forever.

Was the actual cause of death of Philip McKeon ever revealed?

Are the rumors true that it was AIDS-related?

His IMDB cause of death is simply "long illness."

I thought he had MS or something like that?

R262. Ask Nancy.

Please St Peter, don’t let her in. Seriously, if you do, you’ll regret it.

I never cared for her. Always a bit too obvious, reminded me of my daughter Nancy...

[quote][R249]. If Miss Shirley Jones could survive Jack Cassidy AND Marty Ingalls, she will live forever.

Marty INGELS.

The person being referred to was Mrs. INGALLS, as in the matriarch of "Little House on the Prairie," played by Karen Grassle.

R237 It was the one where she sang "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy?" with Martha Raye.

Ever since Bonnie Franklin dropped dead I've felt that another very appropriate shoe needed to drop.

Now it finally has.

NOTHING these bitches did can excuse the crap they made money on with their disgusting "brave single woman" shows.

I wonder if Linda will be buried in the same Jewish cemetery as Bonnie Franklin.

Her husband Steve Bakunas is a handsome silver daddy, but in photos of him around the time they got together in the late 90s, he is fucking gorgeous.

R266 Well, eat your feelings, Kate, and see if that dress "shrinks" some more.

[quote]But seriously, she wrapped Mid Century Modern like ten days ago. That cancer either was hiding low key or it was discovered and grew QUICK.

It may have thrown a clot that killed her.

Or she could have had a bad reaction to chemo. "Complications" is a key word here. 87 is old as the hills, and very few people are strong enough to tolerate chemo at that age.

Reposting the Linda and Martha Raye “Da Ya Think I’m Sexy” duet with the flashdance outfits.

R6 Patricia Routledge objects to actor ... "I'm an actress."

R271. She was 87, hubby Steve is 67.

R274. Every time I see that, it just gets more horrific.

Steve must be a closet case. I can't imagine a straight man wanting to marry LL.

R278 that thought had occurred to me.

How do you explain Kip Niven then?

Her earlier husbands seemed to be straight. Steve may have been just a companion, who knows.

A very shaky clip of LL as Rose

R282, she's actually great in that. Don't understand the DL hate for Lavin as Rose

Nancy McKeon posted a sweet tribute.

Linda and her husband Steve Bakanus at Sarah Paulson’s birthday party 2 weeks ago.

[Quote] I wonder if Linda will be buried in the same Jewish cemetery as Bonnie Franklin.

I don’t.

[quote]I wonder if Linda will be buried in the same Jewish cemetery as Bonnie Franklin.

I'm envisioning a sitcom with Linda and Bonnie as wacky dead neighbors.

[quote] Please St Peter, don’t let her in. Seriously, if you do, you’ll regret it.

Don't worry, I won't.

I only let in Catholics.

Lucie Arnaz would like you to know that "Linda Lavn" has died.

There's no "I" in Lavn!

Linda team

[quote] Steve Bakunas Headshot

His last name is Headshot?

Alfred Lutter is still alive, but I don't think OG Tommy has acted since the 1970s.

r293 Cool - we're talking about the sitcom version

R294. I know. I should have made this clearer in my post, but Lutter DID appear in the pilot. He worked with Lavin.

See link.

I remember reading in TV Guide or somewhere that he'd been recast after; they wanted younger and cuter -- I remember thinking show biz is ROUGH!

Hal Linden will soon be joining Linda and Bonnie to make another industrial musical.

Phillip McKeon basically ONLY did Alice - he ended up as a radio announcer as I recall.

At the risk of jinxing him, I completely forgot that Hal Linden is still alive. He could turn 94 on March 20.

I'm sure PHillip made some $$$ on Alice (he appeared infrequently in last season, I recall?? maybe) but I would have said to an agent GET ME one more 7 year long series!

I see Linda and Bonnie doing a Heavenly tour of Death Becomes Her for all eternity.

I'm quite certain they're both looking up at us fondly.

I don't recall Alice slapping, yelling at, or trying to manipulate her kid like that mean bitch Ann Romano.

If only Sandra Gould was available to replace her in Mid Century Modern.

Waiting for that DLounger with the legendary story of being ignored by Linda as she passed him at a restaurant. Was it Sardi's? He had just seen her in a show and was dying to thank Linda for her performance but she was just not interested.

That Do Ya Think I'm Sexy number is so cringey.

Martha Raye is all but forgotten now even though her career spanned decades and she was always on TV.

Nicky Silver and Paul Rudnick should be thanking their lucky stars that Linda Lavin graced and elevated those mediocre to dreadful plays they wrote.

In defense of Ann Romano (that’s the first time anyone ever uttered that), she was trying to raise two drug addicts, one of whom was a whore; and a baby homosexual too precocious for his own good. And they were living in a building with a lecherous super who appeared ready to kidnap any of them and take them across state lines foe a shotgun wedding.

She had reason to slap them around.

Alice’s son didn’t cause her nearly as many problems.

What's that equally cringey number she and Ron Liebman do in that TV musical special?

I know Martha “Big Mouth” Raye mostly from her Polident commercials & her late life marriage to the much younger - & gay - Mark Harris.

Does anyone remember Marcia Rodd? There was a time in the 1970s of my youth when I'd confuse them as they often played the same type of wisecracking New York dames. And wasn't Marcia also married to Ron Leibman?

Is Marcia Rodd still with us?

Will they dim the lights on Broadway for her, or is she too TV for purists?

She definitely deserves a dimming.

R298, the great Barbara Barrie, who played Barney’s wife in the first few seasons, is also still with us at 93.

I remember Marcia Rodd only as a panelist on the syndicated WML.

Philip McKeon was hired for the bulge factor

Rodd and Lavin played in "The Last of the Red Hot Lovers" together for about 5 months.

The eyelash budget on that show must have been astronomical, R317.

Trivia: The guy played Phyllis's gay brother on that classic MTM Show episode, opposite the much more talented Valerie Harper.

Was she a smoker?

I remember a few months after Valerie Harper died, Lavin was interviewed for a project she was doing. Harper's death came up, and the fact that they had their own CBS series together at the same time - and then Harper replaced her on B'way in 'Tales...'

Lavin rolled her eyes, and then made a remark that 'people on the street' always stop her and mix her up for Harper, and tell her 'Rhoda' was their favorite character on TV.

Did her hay hubby off her? She died pretty quick. Hmmmmm

^ gay

Makes me wonder if they auditioned Lavin when they originally were casting Rhoda for The MTM Show.

R323 They didn't. The casting people found Harper when she was in a play in LA (I think it was a comedy) with her husband Dick Shawn. Watching her on stage, they realized they found their best friend for Mary - Rhoda Morgenstern. They met with het after the show and asked her to come in and 'read with Mary' - which Harper couldn't believe. She did, and after the reading, they offered her the role that would change her life. No one else auditioned.

Alice Doesn't Live Anymore..

was just waiting for someone else to say it.

[quote] Alice Doesn't Live Anymore..was just waiting for someone else to say it.

Your wait was over yesterday; r19 posted it.

Ellen Burstyn is fine. She sends her love.

R284 What's up with Nancy McKeon?

"Look after each other' sounds like they both went to a hot place & not a cloudy place.

She really has crazy eyes in recent pics. That "Pen Pals" pic shows she could play a psycho really well.

[QUOTE] Eldergays and eldergays at heart, PLEASE let this thread make it all the way to 600 posts. It's what Linda would have wanted.

Meh. She ain't no Bonnie Franklin, gurl.

[QUOTE] Was she a smoker?

More of a joker and a midnight toker.

Do we elect a DL delegate to speak at her memorial service?

And when will there be one of those online guestbooks we can all sign? They’re usually connected to the mortuary.

Post 331, we're over halfway there R329.

How did Dick Shawn feel about that, r324?

When is her funeral...or celebration of life ?

[quote]No one else auditioned.

That's not true, R324. Why are you talking out of your ass? They read many actresses for Rhoda and were having a rough time because no one was quite right. (Anne Meara and Candice Azzara were two.)

CBS's head of casting at the time, Ethel Winant; MTM; and the producers have spoken about this a lot.

Here, MTM said Valerie was a "last-minute, one-more-look" read for the part, and she nailed it.

🎶 There's a new grave in town... 🎶

So apparently there were 7 of 10 episodes filmed of Mid Century Modern. Wonder what they'll do to replace her.

R337 Hire a gay cook?

[quote] Hire a gay cook? —Coco

Not anymore. See R57 and R58 of the below-linked thread.

"Linda Lavin Dies" sounds like the same kind of endless busywork that her career seemed to be.

It also sounds like the name of Nicky Silvers' next play.

How old would an actress have to be to play Nathan Lane's mother?

Has Linda in Wonderland been scrubbed from the net? The google link I found links to something else.

Judy Light is calling as we speak

Why didn't Mel and Alice hook up? He fucked that lot lizard Flo. Maybe Alice wouldn't put out.

When is her Celebration of Death?

Where do I send flowers?

[quote]Was she a smoker?

She was 87 years old. Who the hell cares whether she smoked.

Are you retarded, r343?

We're so lucky to have all those vocals she did of the show's theme song, over the years. Her voice is a national treasure.

I wonder if Polly and Diane still hated her guts. Linda did an interview fairly recently where she said she hadn’t spoken to Polly since they crossed paths on Broadway around 1990. And I wouldn’t be surprised if Diane stopped talking her altogether since she left the show in 1981. I think Celia and Beth were just satisfied being on a hit show and stayed out of Lavins way, and worked not to upstage her like Polly and Diane did.

R350 = spokesperson for the National Foundation for the Deaf

She was also good/funny as Meadow's shrink on The Sopranos- this video has been posted here on the datalounge before by me and others but it just shows the variety of her characters unlike HOLD ME DAVID.

The idiot that posted this video sounds like a ALT RIGHT WACKO himself based on how he titled it.

She went so quickly after the diagnosis…I wonder if she took the “bitter pill.”

[quote]They didn't. The casting people found Harper when she was in a play in LA (I think it was a comedy) with her husband Dick Shawn.

Valerie was never married to Dick Shawn. Her first husband was Richard Schaal.

[quote]Trivia: The guy played Phyllis's gay brother on that classic MTM Show episode, opposite the much more talented Valerie Harper.

Robert Moore. Directed "Murder By Death" among other things.

Marcia Rodd was the original Carol (the Adrienne Barbeau role) in an "All in the Family" episode that featured Maude.

R295, the story I heard was that Lutter grew too much between the filming of the pilot and the start of the actual series. It’s a shame as Lutter had real personality and presence. McKeon as Tommy was DOA and didn’t bring much to the role.

3.2.1…

Yeah, the bitch got me fired. That's fine. I turned out ok and have a great career today. Plus I got to work with Burstyn, Jodie Foster, James Earl Jones, Woody Allen, Walter Matthau and Sada Thompson.

Linda worked with Katt Shea and Kermit the Frog.

Marcia Rodd was also the first Mabel cast in Mack & Mabel.

I could cheat and look on IMDB, but does anyone know if Linda ever did any of the Big Four anthologies (Love Boat, Fantasy Island, Hotel, and Murder, She Wrote)?

I was leaving a restaurant when she walked in and she knew one of the people I was with so they chatted a bit and I was introduced to her. I like to bring up something that people might not expect (I *wasn't* going to bring up Alice). I mentioned having this record and loving it. I...think...she appreciated it.

Wow. You certainly embarrassed yourself, R363.

R362, she did do an episode of Touched By An Angel as did Bonnie Franklin!

Sad. I watched Alice in reruns only. It was a very pleasant show. It actually dealt with some really controversial topics that first season like Mel’s gay friend, and Vera trying to kill herself. It was a little disturbing for a sitcom watching them trying to keep Vera awake and alive for 30 minutes until help arrived.

It is confirmed Tawmy had well north of an 8 inch thick cock. I do believe he died of complications of AIDS. Was he really a maga?

RIP Linda. I truly enjoyed Alice, and she was always very funny in it, except when she tried to play other characters. Only one season had good vocals on the theme song.

Tawmy is pouring boiling hot water on her tired feet right now. (I laugh every time I saw that in the opening- he’s pouring scolding hot kettle water on her feet).

So sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee——eeeet!

How so, r364? Pray do tell.

[quote] It was a little disturbing for a sitcom watching them trying to keep Vera awake and alive for 30 minutes until help arrived.

Sitcoms were different, back then. Mary Tyler Moore got hooked on sleeping pills. Dumb old Betty White got hooked on opioids (Golden Girls).

r366 "It is confirmed Tawmy had well north of an 8 inch thick cock."

How is it confirmed? Source? Link? Proof?

As they used to say on the Datalounge, R366: PICS OR IT DIDN'T HAPPEN.

Linda Lavin molested me.

Scroll down for the picture of him in a Speedo.

R372 And he was young, it was soft. There’s no doubt he was packing a 9 or 10 incher.

He definitely had raging BDF.

But that Alchetron link is just AI-collected info and photos.....hilarious that, mixed in with his photos is one of Nancy Marchand as Livia Soprano!

Wasn’t her second marriage, to actor Kip Niven, scandal prone?

I was wrong about McKeon not appearing much in the last season; he appears to have been in every episode. He did a total of 197 with Lavin, "Vera" and "Mel" logging in 202 each.

That's only five that he missed which wasn't much.

I recall him reciting all the Presidents at the time. Impressive.

R376 He was very briefly in most.

thanks R363 / I wasn't aware this existed /

back cover to The Bunch / 1966 comedy album on RCA /

I've been watching 'No Good Deed' on Netflix, in which she's in a few episodes as 'nosy neighbor' named Phyllis. I have grown to appreciate Lavin as a talented actress - and her comedic talents really shine as guest appearances on other TV shows. On her own show 'Alice' she didn't come across as that funny and comical - yet I think that was more the fault of the writers and directors as you can only do so much with what is given to you.

Linda, we hardly knew Ye 😭

Mel's chili strikes again!

If the DL had a Grand Rotunda, would Linda be lying in state?

Concept comedy albums seem to be a distinctly '60s thing. I just recently discovered that the producers of The First Family milked that cash cow all the way to 1968, with an album about Jackie and Ari's marriage. Beware of Greeks Bearing Gifts.

This thread is slowing down. We need it to hit the 600 mark. Come on, people. Do some scattin' and boppity boppin'!

Bruce Vilanch shared a glowing tribute to Linda on FB this morning (which I sadly seem unable to share), talking, among other things, about her enormous generosity in starting an arts center and community in Wilmington, Delaware, where she'd made some TV movies and settled down for a while. I imagine most of that was funded with her Alice earnings.

R382 absolutely.

And somewhere off to the side, a box of straws would explode on the hour.

r385 It was Wilmington NORTH CAROLINA, where many movies and TV series have been made.

Wilmington, DE is hardly known for its film production.

[quote] Wilmington, DE is hardly known for its film production.

They have great ice cream in Wilmington!

R375 I think he cheated on her and was asking for alimony or a big settlement but didn’t get it.

When Ellen Burstyn was making “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore” she was offered an upfront salary or a reduced salary but a piece of the back end. She was going through a difficult divorce at the time and needed the money so she took the money upfront. Little did she know at the time that the back end would’ve included a piece of the tv series. The movie was a hit but she saw none of that money either from box office or the tv series

[quote] Was she a smoker?

No, but she was a joker and a midnight toker.

[quote] They have great ice cream in Wilmington!

Great donuts too! I had some on my way to see the wretched!

Linda's probably not famous-prolific enough for Broadway to dim its marquees for her, right?

Broadway is not big enough for Linda!

Valerie also had comedy album experience, r383...

But seriously - Tommy was so hot when he was young

I never got her…

r396 Got her what?

I haven't stopped masturbating to that "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy?" performance.

R395, he was a child when he started and didn't age into a hunk or anything but there was a period when I thought what a cutie!

Did anyone notice that Alice and Tommy's apartment had the same layout at Lou's house on Mary Tyler Moore?

R389 bet Ellen still kicks herself over that, but she ended up winning the Oscar, so not completely bad. Still money is money. I always wondered why Ellen didn’t guest star on the show, considering it had three actors from the film at different points. I bet the producers thought of it, but Lavin probably shut it down. For such a long running, successful show, Lavin, like Bonnie Franklin, could only muster one Emmy nomination for the entire run. The Academy just never really warmed to these two.

Re: Collected Stories. Somebody mentioned this upthread. She did it on Bway opposite Sarah Paulson and was nominated for a Tony.

Years before, however, it was filmed for PBS. Lavin played opposite Samantha Mathis. While channel surfing one Sunday evening, I happened upon it just as it was starting.

I was riveted! I thought they both gave astonishing performances, but Lavin was exceptional. At that point, I became a real fan.

I just went to YouTube and here it is. Obviously not a very great copy, but I'm gonna watch it again later on. I strongly recommend it for everybody on here.

Ellen definitely could have made a special appearance during the later seasons, after her movie career quieted down.

Or Kris Kristofferson could have done a cute cameo as a customer at Mel's and then scatted with Lavin over the closing credits.

Skittly skat skoot!

[quote]Ellen definitely could have made a special appearance during the later seasons, after her movie career quieted down.

Once she made it, I don't think Burstyn has ever been in want of a movie role.

Eric Stoltz posted a fond remembrance of her on Threads. He directed her on 'Madam Secretary'.

Tonight, on a very special Alice ... A power outage traps Alice in an elevator with a woman who seems so familiar (Special Guest Star Ellen Burstyn).

There is that shit infested troll here stinking things up. Fuck off and die bitch.

Linda on Theatre Talk circa 2015 / re: Collected Stories

Does this mean I don’t have to do that dreadful sitcom anymore that Simon forced me to do behind my back all because I planned to leave him for Jonathan Bailey?

Does anyone have the interview with Linda mentioned earlier in this thread about the last time Linda saw Polly?

[quote] A Tribute To Linda Lavin

[quote] Rest in peace, Linda.

Rest in PISS, Linda!!!

That sitcom is an embarrassing step down for Bomer.

All the newspapers had to ask was if she was found in the nude?

Watched a bit of the show she did with Cunt Pat Heaton and I think Linda also sang (or scatted) on this theme, too.

Years before the Lavin/Paulson COLLECTED STORIES at MTC, it debuted there in the late 1990s with Maria Tucci and DL scourge Deb Messing.

R409. You okay?

FREE CONCERT TONIGHT ON THE RIVER PHLEGETHON!

Linda's scattin' & Bonnie's tappin'

Was there a New Year's episode of Alice?

Don't bother with that puerile poster, r419. You'll find that he thinks scatology and the word pussy are the height of wit.

R421 yes. Mel decides to keep the diner open for extra money on NYE, and Flo gets stuck working. Everyone in the diner feels bad for her, including Mel, and they all come by with their dates so she’s not alone.

I really appreciate that Linda tried to incorporate the latest dances and fashion in the show. She shows a real talent for dancing in the episode with Fred "Rerun"Berry.

That was awesome R424! LL poppin' and lockin', Rerun, and poor Jolene with her white girl hillbilly dance moves. Almost as good as the CHiPs roller disco episode!

It's hard to imagine a more bizarre couple than Linda and Lynn Redgrave in that TV special.

Someone once posted Linda a youtube clip of doing her cabaret act and performing "There's a New Girl in Town." She prefaced it with this bizarrely pompous self-congratulatory spiel about how important it was that Alice Hyatt was a pink collar worker and that Linda's show made the troubles of such women visible to Americans everywhere. It was like she thought she was Norma Rae.

R419. Sadly, r409 is definitely not ok.

I wonder if Ms. magazine ever spoke one way or another, positively or negatively, about Alice or One Day at a Time.

Hey don't forget me ! I died nine years ago today - but no one knew for five months.

Hey don't forget me ! I died nine years ago today, too !

Hey don't forget me ! I died three years ago today !

[quote] I wonder if Ms. magazine ever spoke one way or another, positively or negatively, about Alice or One Day at a Time.

Shirley Chisholm once wrote a famous op-ed for Ms. talking about how much she identified with Ann Romano's problems, and how she would have also slapped that little asshole Alex's smirk off his face for smashing her favorite plant.

She said she had much more problem identifying with Alice Hyatt because she never bitchslapped Vera in the same way for exploding the box of straws.

R190- The kind of ACTRESS who could get a laugh effortlessly with the raising of an eyebrow.

R181- Certainly a MUCH bigger loss than

HER ⬇

But a much lesser loss than

There's A New Girl In Town- Three versions.

The lyrics to the theme music was written by Barbra Streisand's dear friends, 'The Bergmans'. So can anyone tell me why Barbra didn't record this song - in every version - in 2011 for her tribute album to the Bergmans ("What Matters Most") ?

Interesting that in the first season opening of 'Alice' in 1976, there's a shot of 'Alice and Tommy' standing in front of their newly rented apartment building surrounded by suitcases and their other stuff.

Similarly, the opening season of 'One Day At A Time' shows Ann Romano and her kids unpacking the car in front of their newly-rented apartment building, surrounded by suitcases and their other stuff, only Ann Romano does a big jump for joy between two suitcases, showing the world her sexy navel. (Freakishly, Elon Musk would do the same thing at a Trump rally 49 years after).

Did CBS try to talk Linda Lavin in doing a jump for joy, too, and she refused because she had enough sense to say "No fuckin' way!" ?

Things must have worked out. She stayed a while.

Is always heard that they tried to cajole Linda into doing that jump and she refused. She instead came up with something where she and Tommy would raise a open hand to smack. She was credited with the first High Five,

A Matter of Life and Death

Why would Linda jump for joy? Her husband had died.

Her husband died and she was a single mother struggling to make ends meet at a diner in Phoenix.

Boppity bop, my ass.

[quote]r382 If the DL had a Grand Rotunda, would Linda be lying in state?

Abso-fuckin’-LUTELY!

What kind of question is that??

In the opening scene of Linda in Wonderland Linda talks to herself as Alice. Alice is pissed that she is not listed as one of the show's stars. It's all very meta.

How was Linda’s clit?

Linda was only iconic on DL for how egotistical and undertalented she was.

Andrea Martin, a theater veteran from the '70s, had Linda's number on SCTV in 1983.

For this portrayal, Andrea might be considered the original DLer.

[quote]In the opening scene of Linda in Wonderland Linda talks to herself as Alice.

And does so very convincingly.

I liked her in Sean Hayes's post Will & Grace show but it only lasted 1 season.

She sure did kill off lots of shows she was in.

And does so very convincingly.

With the magic of split-screen photography.

She also briefly appeared in a few episodes in the Santa Clarita Diet weird tv show with Drew Barrymore and gorgeous Timothy Olyphant.

Timothy Olyphant looks even better - and hotter - in middle age than he did when he was younger. Lucky man.

I just watched the Alice pilot last night, which I had never seen. It's written by Robert Getchell, who also wrote the movie with Ellen Burstyn. The tone is much closer to that of the movie than what the sitcom would become.

r455 In what way? I'm curious, but also lazy

R456, with Alfred Lutter playing the Tommy role, his relationship with Alice is much more smartassy just like it is in the movie, whereas Tommy was just a good all-American kid when Philip McKeon took over the role. The role of Vera is also much closer to that from the movie, kind of a quiet weirdo who you kind of feel sorry for, unlike the happy dingbat she became.

[quote]Why would Linda jump for joy? Her husband had died.

She never portrayed the character as a 'grieving widow' - ever. If anything, she portrayed her as 'the happy widow'. Starting with the opening credits where she and her son are singing and laughing in the car, driving out to Pheonix to begin their new life.

R458 Even in the movie, Ellen Burstyn's husband was an abusive shit.

She wasn't exactly aggrieved after he died.

Alice's husband must have had sizemeat, if the result of them together was Ten Inch Tawmy.

They retconned out all the abuse shit for the TV show.

I suppose some changes had to happen for a TV show to be palatable.

R459 Throughout the series, she barely mentioned her dead husband or her marriage. (I think his name was 'Don'). She and Tommy never acted like they 'missed him' nor did they ever share happy memories of him. I always wondered why she was so happy as soon as she arrived in Phoenix - did she escape an abusive marriage and was now happy Don was dead ?

That's why it wouldn't be out of character for her to jump for joy in the front of her apartment building, celebrating their new life.

r463 You are accurate

R390, see r330.

Honestly, I don't know who was happier back then celebrating their new life as a single mother - Ann Romano or Alice Hyatt. The only one who seemed a little lost and sad she no longer had a husband was single mother Phyllis Lindstrom (and Cloris Leachman played the character beautifully - but she had better writers for her show).

I sang and drove a school bus, sans a husband!

Mrs. Partridge, you were already off the air when Ann, Alice and Phyllis took over the sitcom schedule. No one remembered you.

Did we ever figure out which meals of the day were served at Mel's Diner. I doubt all three waitresses worked from open to close every single day, unless it was one of those diners that closed after lunch.

Perhaps if these ladies knew how to take care of their men in the sack they wouldn't have to struggle alone.

Kiss my grits, R470!

I should revisit Phyllis. I remember most of her grief coming from losing her status and routine, as opposed to genuine love for Lars.

Mary me, r471!

Carol Martin didn't seem too upset about her dead first husband either. But by that point she was getting Mike Brady dick. 😍

Carol's husband walked out. That's why the girls never mentioned him.

R475. He was disgusted by Thindy's goiter.

Excuse me, but I was a single mother too, you racist cunts!

R477 So quickly they forget.

R477 Yeah, but you had a decent job, you lounge singer.

R479 The champagne.....it's burnt!

R472 She would refer to happy times with Lars when talking to her in-laws. It came across as she was rather dependent on him (even raising Bess) and she was lost without him. Ann Romano and Alice Hyatt never missed their husbands, and it seemed like they raised their kid(s) on their own - even while married.

Linda was more likeable than Bonnie Franklin.

If any of those ladies had been married to Dr. Alex Stone, I can assure you they would have missed him terribly.

Why wasn't LL given another series after Alice ended? Was she that much of a high riding bitch?

[quote] Why wasn't LL given another series after Alice ended? Was she that much of a high riding bitch?

She wanted to concentrate on theater. the first thing she did when "Alice" ended was Pirandello's "Six Characters in Search of an Author" at the ART in Cambridge, which I saw. I remember only that she was fine, not that she was memorably good or bad.

[quote] Timothy Olyphant

I loved him in Lord of the Rings!

[quote] Yeah, but you had a decent job, you lounge singer.

Is that a good job - lounge singer? You get to travel around and stuff?

Linda did theater for a long stretch after Alice. She did try another sitcom, the one with Pat Heaton, but it lasted a season and a half. One of those weird 90s sitcoms that came out, had high-ish ratings but still got cancelled after a short time.

She also did one relatively recently with Elliot Gould. The only good thing about that show was the hot doorman.

[quote]Carol Martin didn't seem too upset about her dead first husband either. But by that point she was getting Mike Brady dick. 😍

He didn't die. She turned him gay -- just like she did with the second one.

I'm slightly surprised we never had an American version of Keeping Up Appearances. Linda would have been an ideal Hyacinth.

According to IMDB, Lavin's mother, Lucille Potter Lavin, was a coloratura soprano beside such singing notables as Risë Stevens and Paul Whiteman in concert, radio and TV.

If she was lying in state would it be more appropriate if she was in the pink waitress outfit or entirely in the nude?

I remember Frank Rich's NYT review of GYPSY when Lavin took over the role in 1990 (very rare for a revival to have a second review when the lead actress changes, but I guess the news that Lavin was replacing Tony-winner Tyne Daly warranted this).

Rich starts off the review with a question: Why is it that Tyne Daly, an actress best known as a 'TV detective' to audiences and someone with no musical theater background, can deliver a powerful, knock-out performance of 'Mama Rose' in GYPSY which won her a Tony ?

Yet Linda Lavin, who has a musical theater background (and a television following) delivers such a washout of a performance ? You would think Lavin would be a great choice to replace Daly and make the character unforgettable - but apparently, she didn't (at least not to Frank Rich).

That must've stung Lavin.

As a side note, I remember hearing that Daly's run (November 1989 - July 1990) left the production in the black, and producers / investors were thrilled. Lavin enters (July 28, 1990 - January 6, 1991) and the box office suffers and she leaves the production in the red. The producers work out a deal with Daly to return for a '12 week limited engagement' in April, 1991 (plans to take Daly to the West End in the revival had fallen through) and she agrees - and leaves the production at the end of July, 1991 in the black, once again. Investors are thrilled.

Was her surname correctly pronounced with a short “a”?

r495 Most certainly

I heard Linda was lying in state at the real Mel's Diner in Phoenix.

How does Linda Lavin not have a wax figure at Madame Tussauds?

Early to bed...

Early to rise.

In between she cooked and cleaned...

And gave plenty of head.

r499 Lame

"Love that Joker!"

I did not like Heath Ledger in his role as “Joker”.

I'm impressed. We might honestly make it to the finish line with this thread.

Lavin in GYPSY is somewhat along the lines of Bernadette in GYPSY - very split with strong opinions on either the love or hate side.

Has Susan Dey issued a statement yet?

Why was Vera tap dancing in the middle of the diner? 🤔 Linda must've hated that-less attention for her.

[quote]Why was Vera tap dancing in the middle of the diner? 🤔 Linda must've hated that-less attention for her.

It's ok. Beth was just mocking Bonnie Franklin.

Linda approved.

I think Beth Howland lasted for the entire run of Alice because she kept her head down and her mouth shut, just did her job and stayed out of Lavin's way. She was a single mother and had struggled in the business for a long time so she was surely grateful for a steady gig that paid well and didn't want to fuck anything up by getting on Linda's bad side, like Polly Holiday and Diane Ladd did.

Poor Beth was married to Michael J. Pollard. Later in life she lucked out with Charles Kimbrough (Jim Dial.) Both of them were in the OBC of "Company." Beth introduced the classic "Getting Married Today."

It's too bad Beth never returned to musical theater on Broadway. She would have been great with her comedy and singing.

Beth also sang Just a Housewife in that PBS Working.

That hair color in OPs pic is horrible on her.

Well, it was.

We’re in Pickle Springs!!!

There were some Mel's drive-ins in San francisco. I think I ate there maybe once. Not memorable.

There is the Mel's on Sunset but it was much better when it was Ben Frank's.

Linda and I went to the same university - William and Mary - although I graduated 40 years later than her!

[quote]Linda and I went to the same university - William and Mary

Two of em, huh?

Unlike Bonnie Franklin, I have never heard anything negative about Linda Lavin.

So you're saying that Franklin DID hear negative stuff about Lavin?

The Mel's Diner chain isn't associated with Alice. There's a couple of them in Reno (or there were, I'm not sure if they're still here).

[quote] Later in life Beth lucked out marrying Charles Kimbrough (Jim Dial.)

And WHY did he wait six months to report her death? I call that [italic]suspicious!

True Confessions: I look after my aged mom, and the other day of course had to break the news that Linda Lavin died. Then in tribute I sang the Alice theme song, sitting by my mom’s bed but eventually going full OUT.

She stared at me and said, “Did you used to do that for auditions?”

That's elder abuse, r522.

Hi BILL TAYLOR @r522 !!

I have never heard anything negative about Linda Lavin.

You must be new here.

Linda sings the Alice theme song in her cabaret show.

I'm not r518 but I am an old theatre queen professional working on Broadway for more than 40 years and my social media is filled with tributes from the current leading lights of Broadway, most of whom knew or worked with Linda Lavin, all singing her praises for not only her talent, but also for her warmth and generosity. I never knew her, however. She was a strong woman, no doubt, and certainly could be challenging.

But it's a very different reality from the DL bitchiness on this thread.

I may have created a monster.

Now my mom is happily singing an approximation of the Alice song, herself.

[italic]“There’s a new girl in town / And her hair IS BROWN!”

R527 0 /10. Not even slightly believable.

What’s so unbelievable about r527’s post?

My friend was Lavin’s dresser when she was a replacement in THE SISTERS ROSENSWEIG, and had no drama to report.

(I can report that Lavin did get the star dressing room.)

Social media feeds are filled with so many warm remembrances of her......it is surprising.

In 1980, I was 22 and living in LA. One day, trying on shoes, a tiny woman sat next to me and we helped each other decide on what to buy. I had no idea who she was until a little girl asked for her autograph.

Linda Lavin and I were walking along the beach one day, when I realized there was only one set of footprints.

R533. Lavin made you carry her?

Linda was the wind beneath your wings.

r532 Well, who was the tiny woman?

R534 Now THAT's the DL I know

R536. IMELDA MARCOS, ROSE!

Related thread - is Linda a bitch?

Perhaps Linda wasn't the problem so much as Polly and Diane.

No one's going to post a tune from her albums?

Stars Would Fall - Linda Lavin

More Linda L. =

None of you posted my Xmas song on any of your recent Christmas threads?

How dare you do that to a Jew!!!

[quote]R544 None of you posted my Xmas song on any of your recent Christmas threads? How dare you do that to a Jew!!!

I’ve always been kind of agog at Barbra Streisand’s Xmas albums. Like, what is she doing singing about mangers etc., urging us to fall on our knees before the Prince of Light ? ? I mean, is that the most cynical money grab EVER ? ! ?

Awe R540 aren't you sweet!

Barbra made up for all the goyish drek when she did “Yentl.” Her singing on that is so good I could plotz!

[quote]Linda was more likeable than Bonnie Franklin.

That's an awfully low bar.

[quote]Later in life Beth lucked out marrying Charles Kimbrough (Jim Dial.)

Many years earlier, both were in the original cast of "Company."

Linda always reminded me of Lanie Kazan - especially as she hit her 60s. Too bad no one cast these two in a play or movie - they could've played very believable sisters.

Speaking of which, maybe Lanie could replace her in the new comedy she was filming and had a few episodes left to go.

r551 That's actually a great idea - tell the producers that!

R549 quoted R509:

[quote] Later in life Beth lucked out marrying Charles Kimbrough (Jim Dial.)

And R549 then wrote:

[quote] Many years earlier, both were in the original cast of "Company.”

Yet R509, right after the sentence quoted by R549, wrote:

[quote] Both of them were in the OBC of "Company."

r553 Thanks?

If this thread hits 600, an angel named Linda will get her wings!👼

I remember for a time someone would always refer to her as "Noted cunt Linda Lavin"

r556 I want to be known as a noted cunt - great goal

R556 Hi, Polly! I bet you're having a very happy new year.

R449- Never a funny show

R559 is woefully in need of a sense of humor.

If you want my body….

[quote] If this thread hits 600, an angel named Linda will get her wings!

But that Linda won’t be Lavin.

I guess Diane Ladd can finally say for real “SHE WENT TO SHIT AND THE HOGS ATE HER!!”

Can you imagine how affected she'd have been during the recording sessions for the theme song? I picture her demands to be things like, a darkened studio only lit by scented candles, incense, nobody was allowed to look her in the eye and you could only talk to her through her assistant. I think she also insisted on holding her Bichon Frisé à la Streisand as she sang.

Linda, say it soft and it’s almost like praying 🙏🏻 Linda, I’ll never stop saying, LINDA!

R522 I love that you just HAD to tell mother that Linda Lavin died. God forbid she found out from someone else. I’m sure you broke it to her gently.

It's best to learn about Linda Lavin from loved ones, rather than how I did, on the streets.

I ask you all, Where were you when you heard Linda Lavin died?

Never forget R568!

TV alert: Antenna TV honoring Linda with a full day of “Alice” episodes on January 4.

Live Laugh Cunt!

Dear God, will this thread go to a part Two?

R570 I'm not leaving the house on Saturday!

Was there ever any doubt, r573?

I can't believe she's gone. This is a tough one.

r575 You're right. This one hurts.

And the In Memorium Cunt Award goes to......

I can't believe a death thread about Linda Lavin filled up twice as fast as one about Jimmy Carter. DL is amazing, I'll say.

Jimmy isn't a DL icon, r578.

R578- Call me a silly queen but of all the celebrity deaths in 2024 it was Richard Simmons death that saddened me most of all.

[quote]In Memorium

Oh, dear.

[quote]I can't believe a death thread about Linda Lavin filled up twice as fast as one about Jimmy Carter. DL is amazing, I'll say.

She's got some competition now!

Do I have the energy for a LL is Dead to me thread part 2?

But he was a recent US President and political figure, often a controversial one r579. And that often results in a lengthy death thread.

Sad about the elder Osmond at r582. The 70s icons/celebrities are all dropping like flies now.

LINDA LAVIN IS DEAD TO ME!

I have been listening to the theme song for all nine seasons and think for season four they might have let her do a line of coke before she recorded. It’s my favorite though, because I think it’s the only one that has the line. “things look great when you stand on your own two feet“ season five does not have that line. Do any of you have a favorite version of the Alice theme?

And now Wayne Osmond can do heavenly duets with her!

I don't sing with pop stars.

1998, not singing with two Osmonds.

Stars React to 'Icon' Linda Lavin's Death

Someone mentioned Lainie Kazan. In honor of Linda, I'm sure Lainie would appreciate someone sharing her big tits photo again.

R552 Already taken care of ! I emailed the producers and said, 'You know...Lainie Kazan always reminded me of Linda Lavin. Always got those two brassy, loud-mouthed broads mixed up. Maybe you can ask Kazan to fill in as Linda's replacement now that she's dead and you still need 3 more episodes to film ?"

The producers responded in minutes : "GREAT FUCKING IDEA ! We're getting in touch with Kazan's agent right this minute. We hope her calendar is free over the next month or so. In the meantime, how can we ever re-pay you ?"

Well, I thought about it and finally knew what I wanted as repayment: "I'd like to spend a weekend with Matt Bomer in some cozy, romantic ski chalet and let me do whatever I want sexually with him."

Within minutes I got a response: "He's more than willing to do this!"

I'll update you.

Wow! You know, I really sensed that something glorious would come out of Linda's death - and this is it. Linda scatted, so you can, well, not sure what comes next.

Please continue to update us all. We are all so happy that this has already gained traction for you.

They should keep the 7 episodes they made and have it be season one.

Season 2 picks up with Sybil's funeral. Not sure how it goes in the story (since we haven't seen it yet) but it should be that Sybil owns the house, and at the reading of her will, she leaves it to her son AND her younger sister. Thus creating the situation where Linda's replacement has to move in with them.

Is Tovah Feldshuh busy? I mean, we know Judy Light will do anything for a paycheck and a Klondike bar, so she'd work too.

I'm the one who asked that this thread make it to 600 posts. I think we've gone as far as we can go.

Grief for Linda Lavin is (almost) dead to me!

Rest ...

in ...

peace ...

Linda.

Rest in piss, you crazy bitch!

fah fah fah fah……