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Remembering Farrah and Her Role of Many Lifetimes
A tribute for the 10th anniversary of Farrah Fawcett’s passing.
June 25, 2019 will mark 10 years since the passing of actress Farrah Fawcett. Most people probably remember her for the ‘70s icon that she undoubtedly was. Most likely, the first thought of Farrah is her role as Jill Monroe on “Charlie’s Angels” or the red swimsuit clad model whose posters adorned the walls of every prepubescent boy back in the day.
But it is her later work, first the play “Extremities” about a woman who fights back against a rapist and the 1984 groundbreaking (and controversial) movie “The Burning Bed” that I believe to be her most enduring and significant legacy.
Her portrayals of women affected by violence and domestic abuse allowed others to become educated and aware of the signs of domestic violence. The year 1984 doesn’t feel that long ago to me (and frankly, it feels all too real nowadays, but that’s a subject for a whole different post), but it’s worth remembering that this was a time when domestic violence was talked about in a whisper, if at all. “The Burning Bed” was a highly controversial movie for the heavy issues contained within.
It was a role that many other actresses might not have felt brave enough to take on, but Farrah did. And by making a contribution to erase the stigma of rape and…
