A new documentary about Gilda Radner is on the way. According to Variety, the Tribeca Film Festival will open on April 18th with the premiere of a documentary about the original Saturday Night Live cast member called Love, Gilda. Here’s more info on the documentary, which has the backing of the Gilda Radner estate:
The film is told in Radner’s own words. It weaves together audiotapes, home movies, diary entries, and interviews with her friends and those inspired by her, including Bill Hader, Amy Poehler, Maya Rudolph, and Cecily Strong; Saturday Night Live original cast members Chevy Chase and Laraine Newman, and original music director Paul Shaffer; as well as SNL creator and producer Lorne Michaels, SNL writer Alan Zweibel, composer Stephen Schwartz, Second City CEO Andrew Alexander, and longtime friend Martin Short. Radner was as an original cast member of Saturday Night Live from 1975-1980, and soared in popularity thanks to her classic comedic characters Roseanne Roseannadanna, Emily Litella, and Lisa Loopner. After finding happiness with Gene Wilder, she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Her fight against the disease served as an inspiration to those impacted by the illness to stay positive. She died in 1989.
Love, Gilda marks the feature directorial debut for Lisa D’Apolito. “I fell in love with Gilda Radner while doing pro bono work at Gilda’s Club, the cancer support organization Gene Wilder founded in honor of Gilda, in Greenwich Village where I grew up,” she said on the project. “This started my journey to discover who Gilda was as a person and as a performer. Gilda inspired me and many other women with her remarkable spirit and unique talent that changed the world of comedy. I’m grateful and honored to share the extraordinary legacy of Gilda Radner at the Tribeca Film Festival.”
