No need to grab your glasses…it’s really THE Carol Channing!
With Carol Channing & Patricia Horgan, Huffington Center on Aging
We professional speakers get to live a charmed life with an occasional dose of glitz ‘n’ glam mixed with Eeeeks! I-have-to-do-what???
Last week I received a call from Patricia Horgan at the Huffington Center on Aging/Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. It was Wednesday morning 11 a.m. and one of the speakers for their 2011 Women’s Health Summit had just canceled.
The event was the next day.
Patricia said I would be the last speaker of the morning and the lunchtime keynote was Carol Channing. Could I step in to save the day and possibly tweak my presentation to fit?
This was where No worries! & Eeeeks! meets with a heavy dose of I-don’t-have-time-to-customize panic. Thankfully the outcome was a standing ovation. But here’s the thing: Carol Channing got a standing ovation before she even opened her mouth.
That’s a living legend.
Star of stage & screen for several decades Carol says she’s ”91.2 years old and never felt better.” Best known for her leading Broadway roles in ‘Gentlemen Prefer Blondes‘, ‘Hello Dolly‘ & film ‘Thoroughly Modern Millie‘ she’s won three Tony Awards, a Golden Globe and an Oscar nomination. As if that’s not enough she’s recorded ten gold albums, written her best selling memoirs ‘Just Lucky I Guess’ and has been inducted into the Smithsonian Institute in D.C.
Carol Channing had us at hello. Her quick wit and fascinating life story was both entertaining and inspirational as she proudly told us of her 5,000+ performances of Hello Dolly and she never missed one – even when she was sick. She sang a little for us delighting everyone with her polished stage presence, endearing humor and enthusiastic energy. She is amazing!
