Catherine O’Hara has been an integral part of my life since I was a child.
One of the very first films I latched onto was The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993). O’Hara voiced not one, but two iconic characters in the film: the defiant yet gentle Sally and the devious Shock. On top of her double duty, she also sang.
That expansive range and nuance displayed in just seventy-six minutes permeates O’Hara’s decades-spanning career. From her early work on SCTV (1976-1981) to her collaborations with Christopher Guest and her Emmy-winning role on Schitt’s Creek (2015-2020), she amassed a wide array of colorful characters that endure.
As for her most iconic role, it would depend on who you asked. I could point to at least four roles I’d consider iconic, a testament to her craft and career. O’Hara was a special talent who crafted a definitive character for each generation lucky enough to experience her work.
“Lucky” really is the best feeling to use when watching O’Hara perform.
She was a fearless comedian who always went for it. O’Hara always arrived on screen fully uninhibited and committed. No bit was too big, no joke too silly. She attacked it with expertise, doing it in her own unique way. Whether it was her wobbly recovery from a pratfall in Best in Show (2000), her iconic scream in Home Alone (1990), or the way she pronounced “baby” in Schitt’s Creek, O’Hara enhanced the material given and crafted additional jokes out of thin air.
The real magic (and most underrated quality) of O’Hara as a performer, though, was her ability to tap into the heart of her character. She could have you gasping for breath from laughing so hard in one scene and have your eyes welling with tears the very next. For as big as she was willing to go for her characters, she always made these larger-than-life personalities feel human and win you over.
I feel inexplicably grateful I got to grow up with Catherine O’Hara. Not only did her work bring my life so much joy, as she did for many people, but she also taught me to move through the world with an open heart. She embodied the magic that comes from letting go of other people’s perception. She showcased how comedy requires soul and that empathy can and should trickle into everything.
Catherine O’Hara passed away at 71, and it still doesn’t feel like enough time. I think of all the laughs to be had, the wigs to be worn, the bits to be crafted. It truly feels like there’s a large hole in the industry now. We lost a titan of a performer who gleefully threw herself into anything and everything, making it completely her own. Boxes didn’t exist for Catherine O’Hara. There truly will never be another to do it like her.
Editorial Courtesy of Adam Patla