Emmy nod bittersweet for maker of "Farrah's Story"
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Emmy morning in Hollywood sees actors, directors and producers who earn nominations for TV's top honors wake up with joy in their hearts, but this Thursday saw one exception -- Farrah Fawcett's friend and documentary producer, Alana Stewart.
Stewart made "Farrah's Story," which chronicled the actress's battle with cancer that ended in Fawcett's death three weeks ago, aged 62. It was nominated for best nonfiction TV special, but for Stewart the Emmy nod was bittersweet.
"That's the exact word I use to describe" my feelings, Stewart told Reuters. "But I'm happy for Farrah because this was so important to her ... she always felt like this was the most important thing she'd done in her life."
Fawcett rose to fame in the 1970s as one of the stars of the hit show "Charlie's Angels." Her long blond hair was the envy of women, and its wavy style was copied worldwide. She later distinguished herself as an actress with Emmy nominations for "The Burning Bed," "Small Sacrifices" and "The Guardian."
Stewart sees this nomination as Fawcett's fourth, and one that will help cement her legacy not only as an icon of 1970s Hollywood, but also of her acting successes in the 1980s and later, and her public struggle against anal cancer that showed a brave woman dealing frankly with a deadly disease.
"I think people will remember that beautiful young vibrant girl who captured the world's imagination, and then right through to the end -- her final fight, which was such an amazing courageous battle," Stewart said.
The 90-minute documentary, which aired on TV network NBC only six weeks before she died June 25, was narrated by Fawcett. It chronicles her struggle from her 2006 diagnosis to her final days as she lay in bed, a shell of her former self.
Audiences see joyous moments when she felt she had made progress against the disease, but they also witness hard times, such as when Fawcett feels the pain and sickness of chemotherapy and when she shaved the hair that was her celebrity signature.
Stewart said the hardest part of filming "Farrah's Story" was watching her long-time friend suffer.
But fan response, Stewart said, has been overwhelming with "baskets and baskets of mail" from many viewers who found the documentary humanized a Hollywood star that, in her celebrity, seemed beyond everyday illness. But the reality that audiences watched is that cancer doesn't care about stardom.
"It doesn't pick and choose. Anyone from any walk of life can get it and does get it," Stewart said.
(Editing by Philip Barbara)
