Tina Fey helped Elaine Stritch reach a whole new audience when she cast her to play Jack Donaghy’s mother on the acclaimed 30 Rock. Now, Fey is fondly remembering Stritch, whose career stretched from the 1940s to today.
“Elaine was a 'tough old bird,' but I suspect she may have been a 'tough old bird' since birth,” Fey, who created the show, told People on Friday. “I loved her voice, her timing, her stories and her natural elegance.”
The former Saturday Night Live star recalled that she once complimented Stritch on a butterfly cocktail ring and she gave it to her. “I feel very lucky to have worked with her as much as I did,” Fey added.
Stritch, a real icon of Broadway, died Thursday at age 89. As expected, the Broadway League announced that the lights on Broadway will go dim tonight at 7:45 p.m. in her honor.
“Elaine Stritch will always be remembered as an important part of Broadway's rich history, and she will be missed by her many fans,” Charlotte St. Martin, Executive Director of the Broadway League, said in a statement.
Other celebrities also took to Twitter to remember Stritch.
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