Fly on, my sweet angel

Believe it or not, I didn’t watch “Charlie’s Angels” too much as a kid. I was too young when it first started airing and then there was this thing about my undying love and devotion to Wonder Woman. Not that you have to pick one or the other. But when you’re pre-school age and your parents are convinced TV will rot your brain, you might only be allowed to watch one show featuring impossibly hot women in skimpy outfits who jiggle a lot when they run. So the Angels phenomena was a little lost on me until years and years later. And, as long as we’re being completely honest, Kate Jackson – turtlenecks and all – was my favorite Angel and crush. I just have a thing for the smart ones.

This, of course, takes nothing away from the spectacular, tawny wonder that was Farrah Fawcett. Everyone knows The Poster. Fuck “Baywatch,” she made the one-piece red swimsuit. And, of course, the hair – heavens, the hair. So her passing last week after a brutal and brave battle with cancer was a stark reminder of our collective humanity. It was also a reminder that people’s personal connections with the icons of their youth are stronger (way stronger – damn, people – I come in peace) than we realize sometimes. Last week, almost every tribute to Farrah I read mentioned the countless teenage boys who had her poster on their walls. But let’s not forget the gals who, no doubt, stared with more than just girlish admiration at Farrah’s thrown-back head and cascading golden mane.

Still Farrah was more than just a pretty face. Not all spectacularly sexy women want to be more than just spectacularly sexy. But Farrah did. In groundbreaking roles like “The Burning Bed” and “Extremities” she shed light on the plight of abused women. And then, sadly, when she was diagnosed with cancer, she again used her light to shine it on her battle and raise awareness about the disease. Gorgeous, iconic, conscientious, courageous. Farrah’s life – filled with its beauty and grace, struggle and pain – is a reminder that it’s the journey not the destination that matters.