After an illustrious career spanning more than six decades, 82 year old Debbie Reynolds has been honored by the Screen Actors Guild with the Life Achievement Award. Her Hollywood career began 66 years ago as she was signed by the Warner Bros. after being crowned Miss Burbank at the age of 16. The award was handed to her by her daughter Carrie Fisher in a glittering ceremony on Sunday evening.
Though the actress has not shared a very pleasant relationship with her daughter of late, the ‘Star Wars‘ actress Fisher gave a rather cheeky but affectionate introduction before presenting the prestigious honor.
“I’m very close to this year’s Lifetime Achievement Award honoree,” Fisher said.
“This is an extraordinarily kind, gifted, and funny woman who would give you the shirt off her back if Vivien Leigh hadn’t once worn it in ‘Gone With the Wind‘”.
She added, “She has been more than a mother to me, not much, but definitely more. She’s been an unsolicited stylist, interior decorator and marriage councilor. … Admittedly, I found it difficult to share my mother with her adoring fans, who treated her like she was part of their family. She has led two lives, public and private, sometimes concurrently, sometimes not.”
During her long career, Reynolds got one Oscar nomination (for 1964 movie The Unsinkable Molly Brown), five nominations for Golden Globes and one Emmy Award and has shared the screen with some legends like Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra, Tony Curtis and Fred Astaire.
The 82-year-old entertainer recalled having “a big, ugly bun” in her best-known movie, “Singin’ in the Rain.”
“Some of you may not remember this but I had a bun. At the back of my head I had a big bun, an ugly bun. I’d warned my daughter Carrie who’d just gotten a part in a picture, Princess Leia in ‘Star Wars‘ and I said ‘Carrie be careful of any weird hairdos.’ So luckily, George [Lucas] gave her two buns. Thank you, George.”
While thanking all her fans and audience, she referred to her hit, ‘I ain’t down yet‘ from the 1964musical “The Unsinkable Molly Brown“.
“Well, I ain’t down yet,” she said after accepting the award. Before adding, “Thank you all for this wonderful award.”