I’m reading the obits for Teri Garr, who died today at 79. She was an “It Girl,” with brains, beauty, and an offbeat sense of humor.
Garr had such a great career before getting MS that no two write ups concentrate on the same movies. Most of them cite Mel Brooks’ “Young Frankenstein,” but the list is long. She was delightful in “Mr. Mom” with Michael Keaton. No one will forget her in “Tootsie” with Dustin Hoffman.
My favorite Garr performances? She literally steals Martin Scorsese’s under appreciated “After Hours” as Julie, the kooky girl with a beehive who loves the Monkees. She played herself in Robert Altman’s “The Player.” Francis Ford Coppola liked her so much she was in “The Conversation” and “One from the Heart.”
But a generation fell in love with Teri Garr when she was regular guest on David Letterman’s original NBC show. She was goofy, sweet, and sexy. And of course, she had a brain. Letterman was mesmerized. So were we.
If it hadn’t been for multiple sclerosis we would have seen a lot more of Teri Garr in the last 20 years. She fought MS bravely. We’ll only think of her a warrior.
