The legendary Debbie Reynolds certainly knows how to brighten up a room. People who attended the June 15th YWCA Tribute to Women in Pueblo, Colorado, will agree with me about that. As the keynote speaker, Debbie wowed the audience with a spirited presentation of funny anecdotes about her career in show business, hilarious jokes told in various dialects, and a soulful rendition of “Tammy,” one of her favorite songs.

This effervescent entertainer won my admiration from the day I first saw her on screen as boop-boop-a-doop girl Helen Kane in Three Little Words back in 1950. I think her work in Singin’ in the Rain (1952) and The Unsinkable Molly Brown (1964) -- which earned her a well-deserved Oscar nomination -- is among the best that movie musicals have to offer. Her live stage performances evoke cheers and applause, as my husband and I witnessed while enjoying her show in Las Vegas a few years ago.

"Put in your article that Debbie wants to bring her show to Pueblo," Debbie told me in an interview before her speech. "I do my show 42 weeks a year, and I never turn down a job!" Luckily, I happened to sit next to Nancy Lomax, a staunch Debbie fan, during the dinner portion of the YWCA program. Nancy brought along three gorgeous portraits of Debbie which she had created as a teenager -- and, of course, Debbie signed each of them. While visiting during dinner, Nancy and I agreed to work on booking Debbie’s show for a Pueblo venue in the near future.             

Debbie is as generous with her time as with her talent. She’s done fundraising for the Girl Scouts and is founder-president of the Thalians, a charitable organization responsible for raising millions of dollars for emotionally disturbed children. But, since the 1960s, the project closest to Debbie’s heart has been the collection and preservation of Hollywood memorabilia. My husband and I were fortunate to be the first fans admitted to her Las Vegas Hollywood Museum when it opened to the public in 1996. Although that particular venue later closed, Debbie is now involved in building another museum -- this time on Belle Island in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.

Debbie has faced rough times in her private life, but she’s managed to maintain a positive attitude and a great sense of humor, both very much in evidence at the YWCA program. It must’ve been devastating when hubby Eddie Fisher left her for Elizabeth Taylor back in days of yore -- as well as to be burdened with another husband’s (Harry Karl) massive gambling debts, but the unsinkable Debbie soldiered on. And she jokes about all this today. She’s obviously proud of her two children: son Todd Fisher is designing her new museum, and daughter Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia of Star Wars) has made quite a name for herself with her writing and comedy skills. “It’s nice to have a rich daughter because she won’t have to put me in a home,” Debbie quipped.   

When I asked Debbie what’s the most important thing she wants everyone to know about her, she replied, “That I love people and want to entertain them and make them laugh.” Which she's done gloriously for 57 years! Debbie Reynolds, now 74 years young, deserves a tribute of her own. She’s truly a national treasure.