Nearly 10 years after her death, loved ones are sharing new details about Farrah Fawcett’s final days in a documentary set to premiere Thursday night.
Fawcett, whose acting credits include the ’70s hit TV show “Charlie’s Angels” and 1984 TV movie “The Burning Bed,” was born on February 2, 1947, in Corpus Christi.
In 1965, Fawcett enrolled at The University of Texas at Austin. The following year, she moved to Los Angeles to begin modeling and acting, according to a press release from ABC News.
Fawcett, who earned an Emmy Award and six Golden Globe Award nominations during her successful career, was diagnosed with cancer in 2006. She died three years later.
“This is Farrah Fawcett,” a two-hour special, presents rare footage from the intimate video diaries of Fawcett’s fight against cancer.
It also features Barbara Walters’ interviews with Fawcett and actor Ryan O’Neal, the actress’ partner at the time of her death.
As well, some of Fawcett’s closet friends were interviewed, including Houston-born actress Jaclyn Smith, Alana Stewart, hairstylist Mela Murphy and photographer Bruce McBroom, according to the release.
Dr. Lawrence Piro, Fawcett’s primary physician, and Dr. Ursula Jacob, Fawcett’s physician in Germany who used alternative treatments for her cancer, were also interviewed.
In clips of the forthcoming documentary, Smith said Fawcett’s relationship with actor Ryan O’Neal was volatile and spontaneous.
“It was everything that made a relationship not boring,” Smith said.
Stewart recalled how no one was prepared to hear that the Hollywood star had been diagnosed with cancer.
“Farrah was the Golden Girl to everyone so it was such a shock, to the whole world, when she got cancer,” Stewart said. “It kind of goes to show you that you know, cancer doesn’t play favorites.”
Stewart helped record Fawcett’s experience with cancer, including the day the icon said goodbye to her signature feathered hairstyle by shaving her own head.
“It was very important for Farrah to shave her own head so that she was removing her hair, and cancer treatment wasn’t removing her hair,” Piro said.
“It’s kind of like that fine line between being a victim and a victor.”
At the end of her three-year battle, Fawcett declined quickly and suddenly, Stewart said.
“She started to hemorrhage, she had an infection. One thing led to another and she ended up back in the hospital,” said Stewart.
“We kind of knew there wasn’t going to be a miracle at this point.”
Fawcett passed away on June 25, 2009, in Santa Monica, California, with O’Neal and Stewart by her side. She was 62 years old.
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I googled this horrible title for young men today and this is what the internet yielded.
But there is a new mutated version of these horrible little rodents.
My lovely neighbor, Trish, and my co-worker Jane, and my beloved former co-worker Amelia have all recently fallen victim to this new virus of boys.
Back in the day, when I was in my teens and twenties, we used to actually have to go out and be social with other people to meet women. There was competition and several other factors going on. You had to develop certain skills. Some guys never got it, but some of us, and hopefully most of us tried to develop a little charming game to woo a girl. It’s called courtship. You meet a girl you like and you get to know her. You exchange phone numbers and if you’re lucky, and you call her.
Hopefully her dad doesn’t answer the phone when you call because that’s a wall with a poisonous moat around it.
But if you could get the guts, and the luck to get through, maybe you could take her on a date. This wasn’t the fifties. This was the seventies and the eighties.
You needed to build your character and charm and personality to try to meet a girl in the real world in real-time.
It was nerve-wracking but the rewards could be an enormous bounty of love, romance, fun and maybe even sex. (Holy shit!)
Let’s jump to today. 2019. The world of dating has completely changed.
But people haven’t changed all that much.
That’s the catch in this new technological world.
If a guy is reasonably good-looking and has a decent profile he merely has to swipe right on hundreds of eligible women on Tinder, Bumble, OkCupid, Plenty of Fish, and the list goes on.
This fucker doesn’t even have to leave his couch to connect with women.
And same goes for girls!
But here’s the catch. They never develop the social skills and the thrust and parry of the actual dating experience. (I write a dating and relationship blog, I’ve been in 3 bands and have over a half a century experience. So listen to me people. I’ve seen it and one it all. i go to my sister Janice’s Christmas party every year an i look around the room an know I’ve had sex with more people than everyone else in the room…COMBINED.)
I have begun to see these young guys. Nice enough. Good looking. Probably decent families. Careers.
Seems like a nice catch.
Everyone is swiping like mad now. No one is going out into the world to meet real people anymore. No one wants to talk to a person to even order food anymore. This younger generation doesn’t mind paying more.
They just want what they want now.
I come from a generation that is far more patient.
Because when I was young you had to wait for EVERYTHING.
You wrote letters. You sent away for thing and they arrived 6 to 8 weeks later. There are more examples but I can’t think of them right now because I’m on bit of a rant.
This generation has their faces in their phones and lack any spatial awareness and want everything, easy and NOW.
Technology has made them and provided a platform for all of that.
But we gave them that. We made them.
Three years ago when I stared this blog I had all of the dating apps. I have deleted them all. It’s all full of losers and leftovers for someone my age.
It’s pathetic to read all of the clever nonsense people my age write on their profiles. “Love the beach, camping, mom of two great grown kids, love travel, friends, brunch, camping, adventure, ready for the next chapter of my life.
Fuck you.
I know what living is, and it’s not that shit.
Those sites are just littered with the sad detritus of people from broken marriages that have been cast asunder by their life partners and soul mates. Divorce. Child support. Alimony. The list goes on.
It’s sad.
I want nothing to do with that collective of losers.
These people are just trying to replicate what they think is love. You’re not 28 anymore darling. It’s over. You can desire all the fun camping and travel you want, but in reality you’re simply lost and running from your past and hoping to recreate what your parents taught you what was love, happiness and marriage.
All bullshit.
Am I bitter about my own losses? Fuck no. I forgave everyone ten years ago. Why should I drink the poison hoping all of those fuckers die? I can’t be bothered with that weight.
I know I’ve been hot on this subject but Phicklephilly is a dating and relationship blog and I need to get back to what it really is. The reality of life. Not a bunch of links to some one elses dating column so I can get traffic. That shit ends here.
Once the dating and relationship shit runs its course I’m not doing it anymore on Phicklephilly!
Now that the storm in my mind has passed I need to tak about this new breed of fuckboys.
Guys… come on. Have you learned nothing from us?
Or have you just gotten better at being pieces of shit to women?
I hate you all.
I wasn’t the best representative of a man when I was a teenager but we need to do better.
I’m so pissed off I can’t even write this garbage about these pieces of shit
Go on Tinder or Bumble and swipe on a bunch of girls.
Connect and engage with them
go on an affordable date with them
spend hours talking to them and build an honest heartfelt connection
Girl thinks she has finally met the ONE
Be that good at it. (You are simply practicing and learning about yourself and using these innocent should to figure out who you eventually want, but she doesn’t know that. You have absolutely no interest in building a relationship with her, She is literally a crash test dummy to you.)
go on may one more date with her… maybe
Fuck her
Time passes…
fade away…. (You’ve gathered your intel from another victim on your journey of self discovery
Afer some sudden absence, text her and tell her you need to figure some things out, you can’t do anything right now, work is crazy. Basically lie to her now that you’ve gathered the two days of experience and penetrated her.
GONE
This is some despicable behavior. Like I said. This has happened in the last month to not one but three girls I know. So this is not an anomaly
This is a trend among young men.
Why.
Because they can.
Think about it. No one needs charm or a sense of humor or talent anymore. If you look decent and don’t seem threatening, you put up a profile on tinder and off you go
You don’t build a personality and confidence and approach a woman in public and get to know her. Your little greasy thumb swipes right and you get to meet a pretty girl.
But you’re blowing it and so are they. You meet, you engage so quickly (Just the way this generation like everything. Quick and easy) and within two or three dates you’re having sex.
But at what cost?
Fuck technology and immediate gratification! Your Heart is at stake here!
The technology is new and fast and easy, but hearts are slow and beautiful and they continue to break just like they have for hundreds of years from bad behavior and shitty people.
So in closing, I’ve been inspired at 2:05 in the morning because some douchebag hurt my friend Amelia with his awful behavior.
As bad as I’ve ever been in my legacy I never did that to a girl. I don’t know where this generation is going, but I will advise the women in my life to protect their hearts and take the time to protect their bodies, minds and their virtue from these charming pirates disguised as future husbands.
Text me for advice before you leap ladies, please! I have three sisters and a daughter. I’m here to help!
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I’ve decided to write about all of the celebrities I’ve met in my life. It’ll probably only be once a month, and I’ll crank them out until I run out of famous people.
First of all, Happy Valentine’s Day to all of my phicklephilly readers! I hope you’re in love or at least love something! If you’re not happy today, and if anyone starts talking about love, romance, hearts, cards, or chocolate, just slap them and say ‘it’s Wednesday!
It’s a coincidence and fitting that I release this piece on Valentine’s Day. Because this lady is and always will hold a special place in my heart.
This one happened about 11 years ago when I was working in Manhattan. The year was 2007.
I was sitting in a dive bar in Journal Square in Jersey City one evening after work. My buddy Howard was with me. I’m drinking a beer and reading the Daily News. On the Entertainment page was a little blurb at the bottom about how Alessandra Ambrosio was going to be making an appearance at the new Armani Exchange in Manhattan on Saturday afternoon.
I think every guy has an “It” girl in life. Some movie star, athlete, or model that they just adore. In the 70’s and 80’s for me it was Farrah Fawcett. I LOVED Farrah. I owned all of her posters starting with the famous red swimsuit. I was even a card carrying member of her fan club. Always watched Charlie’s Angels and all of her movies.
But sometime in the 90’s I noticed this one model in a Victoria’s Secret catalogue that really struck me. I didn’t know her name for several years. But once you have a woman in your life and order something from their catalogue, they never stop coming. They must send them out every couple of weeks because I had loads of them coming to the house.
I eventually found out the identity of this exquisite woman. Alessandra Ambrosio. I was in love. Her perfectly symmetrical face, with her feline eyes and lovely tawny hair is a combination that drove me nuts. I absolutely have adored Alessandra for years. I know I love beautiful women, it’s hard not to. But Alessandra to me is one of the most beautiful women on the planet.
Alessandra Ambrosio was born in Erechim, Brazil on April 11, 1981. Her parents are Brazilians of Italian, Portuguese and Polish ancestry and own a petrol station. She enrolled at a modelling class at the age of 12, and at the age of 14, she was one of 20 finalists for the 1995 Elite Model Look national competition for Brazil. Ambrosio was always insecure about her large ears, and at the age of 11, she had cosmetic surgery to have her ears pinned back, though two years later she suffered complications. In 2006, she appeared on The Tyra Banks Show, and said that the surgery was a bad experience and has discouraged her from ever getting plastic surgery again.
I would love Alessandra the same even if her ears stuck straight out like open car doors!
When Ambrosio was 12 years old, she partook in modeling classes, and then began modeling for Dilson Stein at age 15. Competing in Brazil’s Elite Model Look competition started her modeling career in earnest. Her first notable modeling job was shooting the cover of Brazilian Elle magazine. Elite passed along some of her Polaroids to Guess which led her booking the Millennium GUESS? campaign. She has since appeared in advertising campaigns for Gucci, Dolce & Gabbana, Calvin Klein, Oscar de la Renta, Christian Dior, Escada, Fendi, Giorgio Armani, Guess, Emporio Armani, Moschino, Gap, Hugo Boss, Ralph Lauren, Saks Fifth Avenue, Macy’s, Revlon, and the Pirelli Calendar. She has walked the catwalks for designers such as Prada, Chanel, Dolce & Gabbana, Givenchy, Christian Lacroix, Bottega Veneta, Escada, Tommy Hilfiger, Christian Dior, Marc Jacobs, Louis Vuitton, Balmain, Ralph Lauren, Halston, Vivienne Westwood, Giles Deacon, and Oscar de la Renta. She has appeared in numerous international magazine covers, including Cosmopolitan, Elle, GQ, Harper’s Bazaar, Marie Claire, Ocean Drive, Vogue and was the only model to appear on the cover of Glamour in the United States in 2006.
“I HAVE to go to A/X Armani Exchange on Saturday and try to see her! Do you want to go with me?”
“Why the hell would I want to go meet some supermodel? I’m gay!”
“Well she’s a fashion model and I figured you guys like stuff that’s fashionable.”
“I’m gay!”
So Saturday comes and I go to the local Rite Aid and buy a disposable camera. (Yea. I had a little cell phone back then before there were any iPhones or androids and that little phone didn’t have a camera in it. That thing was probably made by Fisher Price for all I know. A lot has happened in the world of technology in the last 15 years!)
So I’ve got my little cheapo plastic throw away camera and I hop on the PATH train into Manhattan. I get off at 32nd Street and walk East over to Fifth Avenue, The store is up around 56th Street so I need to walk north about 25 blocks. That’s a little bit of a hike. But it’s Saturday in the Summer and Manhattan is quiet on the weekends.
After awhile I finally reach the store. There’s a line of people to get in. I get in line behind this Asian girl and I go, “Is this the line to see Alessandra?”
“Oh, I have no idea. I just saw a lot of people here and I wanted to see what was going on.”
What a moron. How can she not know who Alessandra Ambrosio is?
The line is moving and I get inside.
The minute I lay eyes on the super queen I involuntarily gasp. I literally sucked air sharply into my lungs like I never have before.
I can’t believe I am standing in the same room with her. I can’t believe that I’m not seeing just a photograph of my queen. I am looking upon one of the most beautiful women in the world and the only thing that’s separating she and I is space.
I’m starstruck.
She sits down and starts signing things. I’m snapping pics and my heart is pounding. I’m getting closer!
Ohh…my love. My Queen! She is stunning! They take my name and write it on a little Post It. I assume this is because they don’t want any misspellings on the pictures she’s signing.
I finally reach Alessandra!!!
My arm around my queen!
I introduce myself and I can’t believe I am meeting her for real. She says my name and I swoon. My name coming from Alessandra’s lovely lips.
There she is! It’s really her! I’m shaking hands with my favorite woman on Earth. I’m looking into the eyes of the object of my desire for the last 10 years. She signs the photo, and I ask if they will take a photo of me with my camera. She agrees and I hand it to her handlers. I tell them to take a few just in case.
I put my arm around her, and lean in. My hand is on her shoulder! I’m touching Alessandra! My love!
I’m so close to Alessandra, I can smell her.
This is framed in my livingroom.
I will never be the same. I leave with my little camera full of photos, and the above autographed picture.
To Charles, Love, Alessandra. (Heart. Star.)
I love her even more now. I’ve met Alessandra Ambrosio! This day has been a dream come true. I’m holding the picture and I don’t want anything to happen to it, so I run across the street into of all things, a Victoria’s Secret. (Fitting!) I approach one of the sales girls and ask if I can have a bag.
“What do you need it for?”
I hold up the photo. “To protect this autographed picture of Victoria’s Secret model, Alessandra Ambrosio.”
The chick looks like she doesn’t know who Alessandra is and hands me a bag. I gently slide my treasure inside it. (puns abound) I thank the girl and nearly skip to the PATH station.
I’ve added these delicious little videos to close out this piece. I can’t watch the first one without getting worked up. I love her so much.
I met my super queen. I never met Farrah Fawcett. I loved her so much, but I met my new queen Alessandra. It was glorious day in my short life. She’ll never know how much I love her but I met her, We got a picture together, I touched her, and smelled her.
My lovely Alessandra…
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When Farrah was hospitalized, she seemed to fade in and out of consciousness, mumbling incoherent matters in between. She was stick-figure thin, so her dear friend Alana Stewart made every dish on Farrah’s former favorite food list so that she and O’Neal could try to tempt Farrah to eat. She made macaroni and cheese, fried chicken and ginger cookies – but there was no use. Farrah would take a cookie, stroke it gently and hand it back to Stewart with a smile, saying “that’s so beautiful.”
Marriage Wasn’t In The Cards
Fawcett and O’Neal had danced around the idea of marriage since before their son Redmond was born in 1985, with Farrah sometimes pushing it and O’Neal sometimes pushing it. But with three failed marriages between them as well as the difficulties in their relationship, a wedding never happen. One time, O’Neal even proposed to the actress using a cigar band as an impromptu engagement ring, but a flat tire on the way to the shotgun wedding ruined those plans.
O’Neal’s Last Chance
Just before Fawcett’s death, O’Neal decided to ask Farrah one more time to marry him and with tear-filled eyes, she accepted. While speaking about it in an interview, O’Neal said,” The priest at St John’s Hospital arrives to marry us but administered the last rites instead.” The next day, the doctor was ordered to remove the actress’ life support, and Farrah passed away just a few hours later with O’Neal at her side.
In Denial
Before her untimely and saddening death, Doug Vaughan, an NBC senior vice president, worked with Farrah on Farrah’s Story – a type of video diary she made detailing her battle against the disease. Doug was quoted saying: “This is so not the way she thought it was going to go, Farrah was certain that she was going to beat this.” Truth be told, Farrah was so profoundly convinced she was going to make it, the entire point of the video was to show other patients the fight is worth it.
In Sickness And In Health
O’Neal would not leave Farrah’s side during her last days. When he was asked why, he gave a rather unpredictable answer: “She’s never been more lovable,” he said. “There’s a sweetness – she’s skin and bones, but she’s got this beautiful look. I don’t know how long I’m going to get it, but I know why I’ve been around for 30 years for this person.” Although they have certainly had their rough patches over the years, some things never change.
Fighter Right Until The End
For two years Farrah moved back and forth between her comfortable California home and a personal German clinic. In the clinic, she underwent alternative treatments, some extremely painful and invasive. Suffering through the pain and clenching strongly to her mattress, Farrah insisted her best friend Stewart would film every single procedure she had to go through so that the documentary would chronicle her achievement in finding new means of combatting cancer. “She’s had terrible luck,” said O’Neal, “she tried so many different approaches.” Sadly, nothing worked.
Rest in Peace, Farrah. I’ll always love you because you were my first.
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The red, one-piece bathing suit that Fawcett wore during this photo shoot was chosen to cover up a scar she received in her youth. While the exact story behind the injury that caused the scar remains a mystery, sources that were close to her say that it was from an accident while trying to learn to ride her bike. Either way, it all worked out because without the scar to be hidden the red bathing suit wouldn’t have been chosen.
Friends Or Enemies?
After taking a brief break with her former flame, Ryan O’Neal, Fawcett later began dating producer James Orr in 1997, but the relationship almost as soon as it started. In 1998, Orr was convicted of assaulting Fawcett in a highly publicized scandal that was majorly played up in the tabloids. Neither came out from the legal battle unscathed, and since then became enemies. The bad publicity Orr received seriously hurt his name in Hollywood and had trouble finding work.
Kids Before Marriage
Fawcett and O’Neal may have never made it down the aisle, but famously dated from 1979 until 1997 and even had a son together, Redmond O’Neal. Although the couple broke things off more than a decade before her battle with cancer began, O’Neal appeared to be a constant presence in Farrah’s life. While the pair seemed to be picture perfect, their relationship was described by some as stormy and temperamental. There was certainly more than what met the eye.
Sticky Fingers
Just three months after ending her 17-year relationship with Ryan O’Neal, Fawcett began dating James Orr, who directed her in the 1995 comedy Man of the House. Orr’s close friend and sometimes actress Kristen Amber claimed that Fawcett had stolen $72,000 worth of her clothing that she had kept in his home. After a thorough police investigation, and Farrah’s name being dragged through the dirt, investigators failed to substantiate the charge, and Farrah was let off the hook.
‘Til Death Do Us Part
It’s true that hardships can bring people together, and this is especially true in the case of Farrah Fawcett and Ryan O’Neal. The relationship was put to the ultimate test after O’Neal fell ill and Fawcett was there for the whole ride. Although they split up in 1997, Fawcett called Ryan the love of her life, and they but got back together in 2001 after he was diagnosed with leukemia. They remained a couple until Fawcett’s death.
Battle With Cancer
O’Neal wasn’t the only one to fall victim to cancer as in 2006, Farrah was also diagnosed. For three years, Farrah fought hard against the disease and sought various types of treatments, but her efforts were to no avail. Cancer quickly spread to the rest of her body, and she unfortunately passed away on June 25, 2009. Farrah was surrounded by Ryan and her son Redmond at the time of her death as well as the final moments leading up to it.
Kicking And Screaming
The first time O’Neal and Fawcett decided to cease their relationship, back in 1997, was not a pretty sight. The two were screaming, scandals of infidelity hit the fan, and even news of low-level violence would surface in tabloids thirsty for information. However, just because they could no longer keep their cool enough to be interlinked romantically, did not mean they were willing to terminate any further interaction with one another altogether. Therefore, the second and last time the two parted was when Fawcett was on her death-bed.
Photo Fight
In 1980, O’Neal set up a meeting between Fawcett and artist Andy Warhol, where Warhol created two portraits of Fawcett. The one of a kind portraits were later loaned by the actress to The Andy Warhol Museum. After a 2013 court case between O’Neal and the University of Texas, whom Fawcett named as the recipient of her artwork, one of the portraits was deemed the property of O’Neal. During the court case, the portrait was valued between $800,000 and $12 million.
Michael Jackson Overshadowed Fawcett’s Death
Fawcett died at age 62 on June 25, 2009, the same day pop icon Michael Jackson died, at Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, California, with O’Neal and Stewart by her side. Unfortunately, the news of Fawcett’s death was largely overshadowed by the coverage of singer-songwriter Michael Jackson’s death, which occurred a few hours later in Holmby Hills, Los Angeles. Even in her final moments, O’Neal said that Fawcett managed to keep a smile on her face.
Permanently Damaged Their Son
O’Neal was quoted recently explaining he fully understands the extent in which his fighting with Farrah deeply damaged their son. He elaborated: “One of us should have been the grown-up. Instead, we were two single-minded people who gave into our baser impulses…Our moral compass had become submerged in a sea of ego and confusion and our sweet little boy would bear the brunt of the corrosion.” Because of his unstable childhood, Redmond turned to substance abuse.
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