Carol Channing.Photo: Photoshot/Getty Images
The Great White Way is paying tribute to one of their own.
Carol Channing, the saucer-eyed, gravelly voiced Broadway barnstormer whose offbeat personality and marquee value fueled such Golden Age musicals asGentleman Prefer BlondesandHello, Dolly!, has died, her publicist B Harlan Boll confirmed in a statement to PEOPLE. She was 97.
Tributes to the late Tony winner have poured in since the news of her death broke early Tuesday morning, including Bette Midler who took over her famous role inHello, Dolly!in the 2016 Broadway revival.
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She continued, “When Scott Rudin invited me to play Dolly in 2016, I immediately thought of her and went to visit. How could I not? She had played the part over 7,000 times around the world, and to the world, she WAS Dolly. It was one of the great afternoons of my life. She was gracious and she was generous, sharing with me the legends, the lore and the mechanics of Dolly, much of which had been lost in time. I will forever be grateful to her for lighting my way to one of the most magical experiences of my performing life, and for the hours I spent in her company.”
“I flat-out adored her and send her fans, her friends and her son, Channing Lowe, my condolences, although as far as I am concerned, she will live forever,” she concluded.
Other Broadway stars likeLin-Manuel Mirandaand Bernadette Peters also honored the late Broadway legend.
“She was show business and love personified,” she wrote.
Star Trekactor George Takei wrote a sweet message for the late actress and referenced one of the songs that made her famous.
Playbilleditor Ryan McPhee shared a video of Channing performing at 90 years old that showed just how much she loved it.
“Carol Channing convinced you she was invincible on the stage,” he wrote alongside the clip.
source: people.com
