Princess Lei-Lei Is Cray-Cray
by Molly Lambert
Carrie Fisher exemplifies the quality of blowsiness. We cherish blowsiness. Stevie Nicks is blowsy. Laura Kightlinger is blowsy. Bobbie Barrett is very blowsy. Heart might be the blowsiest band. But Carrie Fisher is not only the blowsiest, she is the second generation inheritor of Debbie Reynolds' legendary mantle of blowsiness.
Wikipedia tells me that Debbie currently resides in Los Angeles next door to her daughter Carrie, and her granddaughter, Billie. WHY IS THIS NOT A REALITY SHOW YET? It would be like a Hollywood version of Grey Gardens on Bravo. Fuck the American Kath & Kim remake, I want Debbie & Carrie on a double bill with Kathy Griffin's reality show.
Debbie Reynolds circa 1965
Anyway here's a blowsy interview with Carrie, who got nominated for an Emmy for her guest turn on 30 Rock. If Carrie wins, she should celebrate by taking the Jonas Brothers to Mexico.
Q: You have had trophy opportunities, including a BAFTA nomination for the Postcards From the Edge script
A: I don't really pay attention. I don't have a good memory anymore. I know I got a Los Angeles Pen Award for Postcards the novel, and I get a lot of awards for being mentally ill. It's a lovely combo.
Q: On 30 Rock, you played drunken TV writer Rosemary Howard, an idol of Tina Fey's Liz Lemon. How was it to play this crazy lady?
A: She was a pill addict, too. Not a big reach. I have never officially been a drinker, though. She is a pathetic creature. I am friends with Alec Baldwin, and he was great to work with. I loved when he yelled, "Don't ever make me talk to a woman that old again!"
Debbie Reynolds, Carrie Fisher, & Pat Boone
Q: Will you attend the Emmy ceremony?
A: I don't think I can because I am on tour. I've never gone to an awards ceremony, but I've written for them. That is the best way to go. As a writer.
Q: You worked on the Oscar show three times, including in 2002
A: That was fun, because I was fighting with Wanda Sykes (a co-writer) the whole time. The first two times I was paid with one of those gift baskets — they are so awesome. That's why I did it as much as anything. But the last time, they stopped giving out baskets. Bummer. I don't care if they charge taxes. It's like having a really great Easter. Who wants chocolate when you can get mattresses and watches?
Q: How is your stage show going?
A: I do miss my daughter, Billie. I keep having nightmares about her when I am not seeing her. She's not that interested in me. She's in the 11th grade. I did not like my mother at that age. But the show is doing really well. My crowd is gay, the mentally ill and seniors.
Photograph of me and Tess Lynch, circa Mad Men
Tess and I heard some Conor Oberst in a store recently. Tess made a face that people only make when they realize they're being unconsciously subjected to Conor Oberst.
Molly Lambert is the managing editor of This Recording.
"Lenders in the Temple" - Conor Oberst (mp3)
"Get-Well-Cards" - Conor Oberst (mp3)
"Cape Canaveral" - Conor Oberst (mp3)
PREVIOUSLY ON THIS RECORDING:
Films Of The 1970s Are Awesome
