Linda Lavin Dies: ‘Alice’ Star & Tony-Winning Broadway Actor Was 87

https://deadline.com/2024/12/linda-lavin-dead-alice-no-good-deed-tony-winner-1236243483/?fbclid=IwY2xjawHfDstleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHejHNIJblrX4TtX9YINfUVBbULCUGn_XnllDTQn5lDI_e_MlzOkGssZ--Q_aem_KndPKHXNYdqI28IJGXuqVg

Very sad news. Alice went on and on, but Linda was such a quirky, charismatic lead, and she had a presence I rarely saw elsewhere. Even by the end when she was just showing up at random times as a whole other character. 

I especially enjoyed her different takes on the Alice theme (the first few are the best).

So many losses as we wind down 2024. 

In case anyone missed it, President Jimmy Carter has his own memoriam thread here:
https://boards.soapoperanetwork.com/topic/67963-former-president-jimmy-carter-has-passed

 

Linda Lavin was a talented actress, from theater to TV. She was working right 'til the end with No Good Deed.

I remember her from a Law & Order: Criminal Intent S2 episode. The late Ned Eisenberg played her wimpy son [one of many franchise appearances from him in numerous roles!], and his Mommie Dearest had his wife killed because she wanted a divorce and - having converted from Catholicism - said mama from hell was afraid she would not raise her grandkids in the Jewish faith.

She rocked that stone-cold role. But I will always remember her from Alice, too. (Was she the last people from the cast still living? Edit: Answered my own question via Google: Celia Weston, Diane Ladd, and Polly Holliday are all still with us!)

Insanity because I just binge-watched “History of the Sitcom” today and was delighted to see her discuss how “Alice” represented the working class in the late 70s and early 80s. I never realized Alice was the first single mom on TV who had to live paycheck to paycheck to make ends meet. I just watched the Christmas episode last week and thought about how Linda and Polly were the only surviving original cast members. Now it’s just Polly.

I was absolutely obsessed with the show when I discovered it in reruns on TNN, and it’s been a true favorite of mine ever since. Somehow Linda’s very East Coast, very Jewish self fit perfectly into the country-western world of Mel’s Diner and its regulars. Other characters might’ve stole the show (and they did), but she really was the glue that kept it all together and was a great lead/title character.

13 minutes ago, All My Shadows said:

Insanity because I just binge-watched “History of the Sitcom” today and was delighted to see her discuss how “Alice” represented the working class in the late 70s and early 80s. I never realized Alice was the first single mom on TV who had to live paycheck to paycheck to make ends meet. I just watched the Christmas episode last week and thought about how Linda and Polly were the only surviving original cast members. Now it’s just Polly.

I was absolutely obsessed with the show when I discovered it in reruns on TNN, and it’s been a true favorite of mine ever since. Somehow Linda’s very East Coast, very Jewish self fit perfectly into the country-western world of Mel’s Diner and its regulars. Other characters might’ve stole the show (and they did), but she really was the glue that kept it all together and was a great lead/title character.

I've seen some people point out that Julia was likely the first, although I don't know how much the poverty aspect was emphasized. Either way, Alice was definitely different from a number of other sitcoms at the time, especially those earlier, grittier episodes. Two I remember well are when Mel took Tommy hunting and Tommy was left traumatized, and when Alice was torn about whether or not she should allow a gay friend to take Tommy camping.

1 hour ago, DRW50 said:

I've seen some people point out that Julia was likely the first, although I don't know how much the poverty aspect was emphasized. Either way, Alice was definitely different from a number of other sitcoms at the time, especially those earlier, grittier episodes. Two I remember well are when Mel took Tommy hunting and Tommy was left traumatized, and when Alice was torn about whether or not she should allow a gay friend to take Tommy camping.

Julia did come to mind, but being that she was a registered nurse, I seem to recall they lived a fairly comfortable life. That’s a show that needs to be ubiquitous across streaming apps for sure.

I totally agree with you Re: Alice. I mostly enjoyed the whole run, but there was a certain style in the first 2-3 seasons that was so unique to this show. It was dusty and hot, there were all kinds of truckers and other blue collar characters dropping in at the diner, a mother and son who kept it real with each other, a breakout character who was a sassy “old broad” pushing 40 and proudly living in a trailer park while going out openly and frequently, etc. When they wrote to those points, they created a world that you wanted to visit each week, and it really made for a great show.

The episode with the gay friend wanting to take Tommy camping left an impression on me, too. I had to have been like 11 years old (so, same age as Tommy), and it was the first time I ever considered that a football player could be gay. So, in this working class world where the men were manly men and the women, while being very independent and assertive, kept their femininity, here’s a guy who challenged that set-up. And that was only the second episode!

It’s funny, because after CBS made the conscious decision to push out their “country” shows in favor of the more urban (and urbane) stuff in the early 70s, some of their biggest hits at the end of the decade were set around a diner in Arizona, a cattle ranch in Texas, the backroads of Georgia, and a mountain in Virginia.

Edited December 30, 2024Dec 30 by All My Shadows

7 hours ago, All My Shadows said:

I never realized Alice was the first single mom on TV who had to live paycheck to paycheck to make ends meet.

I believe it.  Before "Alice" and "One Day at a Time," single mothers on primetime TV had few, if any, financial worries.  Even "Julia," which y'all have mentioned already, depicted a single mom who never appeared to be hurting for cash (judging by Diahann Carroll's fabulous wardrobe, lol). 

I also like how you mention that Alice and Tommy kept it real with each other, @All My Shadows.  Alice and Tommy could joke around with each other, but it was clear that Alice was the parent, and that her first priority was seeing to it that Tommy had an education and was prepared for the real world.

5 minutes ago, Khan said:

I believe it.  Before "Alice" and "One Day at a Time," single mothers on primetime TV had few, if any, financial worries.  Even "Julia," which y'all have mentioned already, depicted a single mom who never appeared to be hurting for cash (judging by Diahann Carroll's fabulous wardrobe, lol). 

I also like how you mention that Alice and Tommy kept it real with each other, @All My Shadows.  Alice and Tommy could joke around with each other, but it was clear that Alice was the parent, and that her first priority was seeing to it that Tommy had an education and was prepared for the real world.

That relationship between mother & son was the epitome of the real world experience & I don't think that had been a thing before that show. It was a really incredible show that showcased real people in real situations, also of course they were very funny people. And, BTW, could I have possibly said the word real any more times?!!

Edited December 30, 2024Dec 30 by Contessa Donatella
more

A Good portion of the Alice cast are now gone: Linda, Beth, Philip, Vic. 

 

RIP Linda

The pilot opening always makes me think of what it would have been like had they developed the show to be more like the movie. Shot on film with one camera, Alfred Lutter as a much brattier Tommy, a balance between comedy and drama, etc. It's for the best they went full sitcom because that's what was going to be successful at the time, but my godddd, can you imagine?

And the aesthetic! I've been obsessed with that desert highway, roadside diner, southwestern USA aesthetic for over 20 years because of this show.

 

Damn!

Just heard the news of Linda's passing. I loved Alice. I have all the seasons on DVD.

She had two comedies she was working on with Netflix. She was working with Matthew Bomer.

This one hurts!

May she RIP!

2 hours ago, All My Shadows said:

Alfred Lutter as a much brattier Tommy

No slight against Philip McKeon, but I really hate that they replaced Alfred Lutter after the pilot (unless, of course, he chose to leave, which I could understand).  For one, he was the original Tommy, in "Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore," so he provided a sort of bridge of continuity between the two properties.  For another, he just looked and sounded more like a real-life teen to me, bratty and awkward-looking and not entirely comfortable in his own skin.

 

Former CNN anchor Aaron Brown has died at 76–I remember his 9/11 coverage like it was yesterday:

 

Aaron Brown has died. He was one of the greatest anchors in CNN history. "NewsNight," circa 2001 to 2005, was all Aaron: from his thoughtful writing and rigorous questioning, to "the whip" around the world with correspondents, to his trademark preview of the morning papers pic.twitter.com/a47bHrDtDP

— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) December 31, 2024

CNN is reporting that former anchor Aaron Brown has died.

I'll never forget his reporting on 9/11 from the roof of CNN, capturing the horror we were all feeling as the buildings collapsed: "Good Lord, there are no words" https://t.co/K6pi0zqXFc pic.twitter.com/4U50LF3gi5

— Jennifer Mascia (@JenniferMascia) December 31, 2024

Edited December 31, 2024Dec 31 by Faulkner