Some performers have an impact so indelible and multi-generational, they become timeless and undeniable. Catherine O’Hara never seemed “of an era,” she was just always part of the pop-culture fabric, right there with a smile and a fully realized characterization that mirrored all the quirks and inconsistencies that make us human. I’m lucky enough to have lived in a time when SCTV was brand new and introduced the world to an immensely talented ensemble of actors, all of whom went on to become comedy legends.
Though the cast consisted of mainly male performers, Catherine O’Hara and Andrea Martin kept it from being a boy’s club by sheer virtue of their incredible writing and improvisational skills. My lord, the characters that she created: tipsy nightclub entertainer Lola Heatherton, naughty songstress Dusty Towne, and the ever-patient “English for Beginners” teacher Lucille Hitzger. To me, she was a goddess on that show, with a clearly-defined focus and devotion to her craft.
SCTV alone would have been enough to make her an icon, but she also acted in some of the biggest films of the past few decades from Home Alone, After Hours, and Beetlejuice to Christopher Guest’s masterful improv films, Waiting for Guffman, Best in Show, and A Mighty Wind. Most recently, she gave us an Emmy-winning performance in the hilarious and touching Schitt’s Creek and an Emmy-nominated turn in Seth Rogan’s The Studio.
I would like to also mention she was in a super-weird half-hour animated special in 1978 called Witch’s Night Out, a fun and charming story about the importance of engaging in high-level tomfoolery on Halloween, a season that was very important to me as a kid and continues to be important to me as an older kid. It’s an obscure piece of work that not a whole lot of people seem to remember, but it’s worth seeking out if you’ve not had a chance to enjoy it.
So, yeah, this is terrible news, especially in this current timeline where everything seems like an endless set of traumas manically spinning around the ol’ ceramic flush machine. I think the older I get, the more I’m cognizant of the fact that giving our fellow human beings something to enjoy might be the most important thing we do for each other. I’ll miss her, as all of those who loved her will, but as I always say, how lucky are we that we have all of this fun stuff to enjoy that she left behind for us? That’s the magic of being a creative person—giving is the gift AND the gift you get. I’ll be spending the weekend revisiting her work and I can’t think of a better way to cheer myself up. She was one of the best that ever was, and I’m glad she shared her wonderful art and beautiful spirit with us. | Jim Ousley
