Gilda Radner died on this day 35 years ago, aged 42.
- Radner dropped out of university to follow her boyfriend to Toronto, where she would make her acting debut in the 1972 tour of Godspell (which also helped launch the careers of Martin Short and Eugene Levy). From there, she became a mainstay of National Lampoon's radio show.
- Radner was one of the original SNL cast members when the show began in 1975. Her most notable characters included Weekend Update's Roseanne Roseannadanna, and the Barbara Walters expy Baba Wawa:
Radner also portrayed celebrities such as Lucille Ball.
- In film, Radner was known for portraying Gloria in First Family, voicing several characters in the 1980 animated TV film Animalympics (which included another Barbara Walters expy- this time a bird), and most notably Kate in Hanky Panky- on the set of which she met her soon-to-be husband, Gene Wilder:
Radner and Wilder married in 1984, but Radner would be diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 1986. It went into remission, but returned in late 1988, and Radner died after a 3-year battle. After her death, Wilder would dedicate himself to research of the disease in hopes of a cure, and would co-found the support group Gilda's Club in 1991.