Long ago, in a galaxy far, far away, Carrie Fisher shot to fame as Princess Leia in the original “Star Wars.” I remember being completely caught up in the fun of that movie in the summer of ’77. The floating car and all those Cabana critters were cool, as were those nimble cross-wing fighters. Fisher made a willful, pissy princess, very modern and relatable and not unlike the wee kiltie lassies who worked the halls of St. Joesph’s/Michael Power back in the day.
But I digress. Suffice to say it was a bit bracing to see Fisher on stage at the Beverly Hilton’s main ballroom last summer. She was there to promote her one woman show “Wishful Drinking,” which comes to HBO Canada Sunday at 9 p.m.
Fisher emerged from the wings wearing that crazy Star Wars Princess Leia wig, the one with the hot cross buns on the sides. She’s earned the right to goof on herself, having survived a Hollywood childhood that would have unhinged Obie Wan Kin obi.
Her mom, Debbie Reynolds, comes in for a lot of Fisher’s ribbing. Dada Eddie Fisher was still alive when Carrie met the TV press last summer. She called him “Puff Daddy” after his affection for the weed.
After such a kooky childhood, Fisher had to survive the insanity of the sudden movie fame, being caught up in this iconic franchise. A brief marriage to Paul Simon, the drug overdose death of a friend in her bed, her own battles with booze and drugs, bipolar disorder and eventual shock therapy.
It’s all in her book “Wishful Drinking,” a breezy, funny read despite all the madness in her life. She writes about how George Lucas so owns her image that she owes him a dollar every time she looks in the mirror–which is often due to her vanity.
The stage show is pretty much a recreation of the book with visual aides. For more on Fisher and “Wishful Drinking,” check out this feature I wrote for this month’s issue of Movie Entertainment magazine.
