RIP Kathryn Joosten

I first heard that Kathryn Joosten died of lung cancer on June 2, 2012 in Westlake Village through an email sent by a member of the Industry networking group we called The Table. I had no idea she was a member of it. There are probably over a thousand of us linked by email so we never get to meet everyone and nobody is even obligated to send emails, so it is not surprising that I didn't know.

I just wish I would have been able to get to know her better. She was a wonderful actress and I admired her greatly. I always smiled when she was on Desperate Housewives because she was such a character and played it to perfection. So well that when her character had cancer, it never occurred to me it was mirroring the actor's own life.

However, I remember her most fondly from The West Wing.  That was her first character I fell in love with and I cried when Mrs. Landingham died, much like I did later when her co-star John Spencer, a long time favorite actor of mine, died.

I did get to meet Kathryn... at a table read for Joan of Arcadia when I worked on that series. She came in to play Old Lady God. What most people don't know is that the writers were such fans of her on West Wing (this was long before Desperate Housewives) that instead of calling her Old Lady God in the initial stages of the script, she was called Mrs. Landingham God. This was of course changed before the script went wide, meaning to the crew, actors, studio and network.  But it was great fun to see that character name and have a smile.

I did get to tell her how much I admired her work. And for that I'm grateful.

She was also an inspiration to us older actors just starting out because she didn't start acting until she was in her forties and didn't land a major role until in her fifties. She inspired us with what could be done if you never give up and you follow your dreams no matter how long it takes and when you start the journey.

RIP, Kathryn, the world is a better place for having known you, and a sadder one today.

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