It is with immeasurable sadness that I note the passing of Susan Tyrrell, one of the most talented, joyously bizarre and unfairly overlooked actresses who ever graced the screen. Her oddball and fun performances in ANGEL (1984), AVENGING ANGEL (1985), BIG TOP PEE-WEE (1988) and CRY-BABY (1990) were terrific, but to me and most of her fans she will forever be in our hearts and minds as the evil Queen Doris in the superlative FORBIDDEN ZONE (1982). Here's her signature number from that film, "Witch's Egg," and its lyrics about being akin to "a crane with no legs" now bear extra meaning after both of her gams were amputated below the knees in 2000 due to complications brought on by by the rare blood disease thrombocythemia.
Rest well, Susan. You will always fly high in my memories.
2 comments:
"Unfairly overlooked" is absolutely right. Unique, free spirited, utterly original, the polar opposite of the mundane "stars" that are manufactured yearly now. She will be missed.
When I read about this last night I knew that if anyone would take notice of her passing, it would be your Sir Bunche. Thanks for not letting me down. If there is anything good to come of this, it's knowing that I'm not alone in being bummed out that she's gone. Rest in peace sweet lady. You were one of a kind in a business that seems to hate that sort of thing.
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