Georgia Engel...

...died on April 15th, and I was so sad to learn this news.  I had the honor and privilege of working with her on the national tour of The Odd Couple, Female Version.  She was sweet as sugar, smart as a whip, incredibly generous and supportive, wildly talented, and working with her was a dream come true, having modeled how I wanted to live my life based on The Mary Tyler Moore Show and That Girl (I know I'm not alone in that, growing up when I did).  I got to talk with her a lot on the tour and learned so much about her life, which I won't share here because I don't think that's right.  I will say these two things:  one,  she traveled some with her cat, Baby, during the tour and would go back to whichever hotel we were staying in after the show to make sure that Baby wasn't lonely; and two,  whenever we flew to the next city, which was frequently, she always dressed up, even in the post-9-11 days, because she said that when she grew up, traveling by air was a special occasion and her mother taught her to always look nice when traveling.

Three of the women I worked with on The Odd Couple are gone now, Georgia, Elizabeth Alley, and Shirley Prestia, and it's so hard to believe that they're no longer with us.  I feel so lucky to have worked with these wonderful women and they will forever live in my heart.  Thank you, Georgia, Elizabeth, and Shirley for everything you taught me on the road of life and The Odd Couple.

Pictured below are Elizabeth, me, the fabulous Mary Pat Gleason, and Georgia backstage before a performance :-)