Laughter, music and the tapping of dancing shoes reverberated throughout a public memorial in Los Angeles to Debbie Reynolds and Carrie Fisher.
There were few tears during the two-hour ceremony Saturday, which honored the mother-daughter duo's impact on film and culture with a mix of photos, videos and anecdotes that kept the audience laughing and applauding.
Todd Fisher led the ceremony, which he said was intended to bring fans an intimate view of his mother and sister. Hundreds of fans — some wearing "Star Wars" attire — attended the public ceremony that featured Reynolds' final interview reflecting on her life and philanthropy and one of Fisher's high school friends sharing some her off-color e-mails to him.
A troupe from Reynolds' dance studio performed an homage to "Singin' in the Rain," the film that catapulted her to stardom at 19. After an opening film that was an ode to Fisher's "Star Wars" role, a working R2D2 unit came on stage, mournfully beeped and parked next to a director's chair with Fisher's name on it. Across the stage, near a piano, sat an empty chair with Reynolds' name on it.
Fisher, 60, who starred as Princess Leia in the original "Star Wars" trilogy, died Dec. 27. Reynolds, an Oscar-nominated actress for her role in "The Unsinkable Molly Brown," died the following day at 84. The ceremony was attended by many stars, including Rene Russo, Beverly D'Angelo, Morgan Brittany, Fisher Stevens, Susan Olsen, Griffin Dunne and Dan Aykroyd.
The ceremony featured a new song that James Blunt wrote after Fisher's death, and the Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles performed a somber rendition of Cyndi Lauper's "True Colors."
Banderas shrugs off heart attack
Antonio Banderas says he has recovered from a heart attack that he had in January. The 56-year-old Banderas told Spanish media that "I suffered a heart attack on Jan. 26, but it wasn't serious and hasn't caused any damage." Banderas — whose visit to a Swiss clinic led to speculation about his health — had three stents placed in his arteries. He spoke Saturday at a film festival in his hometown of Malaga in southern Spain, where he received a lifetime achievement award.
swish: A California podiatrist who made history when he shot 2,750 consecutive free throws died March 18 at age 94. Dr. Tom Amberry, a native of Grand Forks, played for the University of North Dakota and Long Beach City College. He earned a spot in Guinness World Records in 1993 after he lobbed in shot after shot for 12 hours. He later said he could have shot many more, but a janitor interrupted him because it was time to turn off the lights.
