Comedy Duo's Heartfelt Onstage Tribute to Catherine O'Hara
In a poignant moment of remembrance, comedy icons Steve Martin and Martin Short paused their performance to honour their late friend and colleague Catherine O'Hara. The touching tribute occurred during The Best of Steve Martin and Martin Short comedy show in Austin, Texas, mere hours after news emerged of the beloved actress's passing.
A Toast to a Cherished Friend
As captured in audience-shared footage, Martin Short raised his champagne flute before the crowd, his voice filled with emotion. 'Catherine O'Hara, I met when she was 18 years of age,' Short revealed, with a 2019 photograph of O'Hara displayed prominently on the large screen behind them. 'And all these years later, she had been the greatest, most brilliant, kindest, sweetest angel that any of us worked with. So, God bless Catherine.'
Eighty-year-old Steve Martin, who recently recovered from illness that caused show cancellations last September, bowed his head solemnly before clinking glasses with his comedic partner. The gesture prompted an eruption of supportive cheers from the Austin audience, creating a shared moment of collective mourning and celebration of O'Hara's life.
Decades of Creative Collaboration
The professional bonds between these performers spanned multiple decades and creative projects:
- Steve Martin collaborated with O'Hara in the 1994 film A Simple Twist of Fate, which he both wrote and directed
- Martin Short worked alongside O'Hara during their early careers at Toronto's legendary Second City and on the groundbreaking sketch series SCTV
- Both actors provided voice work for Tim Burton's 2012 animated feature Frankenweenie
- They reunited as part of the voice cast for 2019's animated adaptation of The Addams Family
Industry-Wide Mourning for a Hollywood Icon
The news of Catherine O'Hara's passing at age 71 prompted an outpouring of tributes from across the entertainment industry. The actress, celebrated for her iconic roles in Home Alone, Home Alone 2, and Beetlejuice, died at her Los Angeles home following what her agency described as a brief illness.
Macaulay Culkin, who played O'Hara's on-screen son in the Home Alone franchise, shared an emotional Instagram tribute alongside nostalgic photographs. 'Mama. I thought we had time. I wanted more,' he wrote. 'I wanted to sit in a chair next to you. I heard you but I had so much more to say. I love you. I'll see you later.'
Other notable colleagues shared their reflections:
- Seth Rogen, who recently worked with O'Hara on his Apple TV+ series The Studio, called her 'the funniest person I'd ever had the pleasure of watching on screen'
- Dan Levy of Schitt's Creek fame described working with O'Hara as 'a gift to have gotten to dance in the warm glow of Catherine O'Hara's brilliance'
- Justin Theroux, her co-star in the upcoming Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, simply wrote: 'Oh Catherine. You will be so so missed'
- Brooke Shields, whom O'Hara famously impersonated on SCTV, called the actress's death an 'unfathomable loss'
A Legacy of Laughter and Kindness
Catherine O'Hara's final public appearance occurred at last September's Emmy Awards, where she attended alongside her husband Bo Welch. The couple, married since 1992, are survived by their two sons, Matthew and Luke.
As the entertainment community continues to process this significant loss, the spontaneous tribute from Martin and Short during their Texas performance stands as a particularly moving testament to O'Hara's enduring impact. Their onstage moment captured not just professional respect, but the genuine affection that characterized O'Hara's relationships throughout her five-decade career in film and television.
The circumstances surrounding O'Hara's passing remain under private consideration by her family, with no official cause of death yet released. What remains abundantly clear, however, is the profound void left by the departure of an actress whose work brought laughter to millions and whose personal kindness touched countless colleagues and friends.
