Jessica Lange thanked Ryan Murphy in the most beautiful way at the Tony Awards
Jessica Lange won a Tony for playing Mary Tyrone in the play Long Day’s Journey Into Night at last night’s Tony Awards, and she spoke some beautiful words during her acceptance speech, reflecting on her success, as well as the tragic event that unfurled this weekend.
“This is a dream come true and it fills me with such happiness even on such a sad day as this,” Lange said, referring to the horrific mass shooting in Orlando. “It’s a thrill and a joy to be in the theater and be acknowledged by this community. I can’t tell you how grateful I am, how moved I am.”
And then backstage, Lange spoke even more beautiful words when she thanked Ryan Murphy for giving her the opportunity to play Mary Tyrone — a character she played 16 years ago in London.
“I’ve played Blanche three times, Amanda in ‘Glass Menagerie’ twice, and now Mary twice, and she is my favorite role,” Lange said.
She said that she told the American Horror Story producer that she wanted to revisit the character, and he made it happen. Because he’s Ryan Murphy, and that’s just what he does (she didn’t say that part, but probably thought it).
“He secured the rights, and then we took it to Todd Haimes and the Roundabout Theatre,” she said. “So I am here by his friendship and good graces.”
Her Tony win brings her one award closer to an EGOT — the acronym for someone who has won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony. So basically, legend status and something only 12 people in history have accomplished (including Whoopi Goldberg and Audrey Hepburn).
Lange has two Oscars — the first she won for Best Supporting Actress in Tootsie, and the second she won for Blue Sky. She also has three Primetime Emmy Awards for her work in American Horror Story and Grey Gardens. So now that she has finally won a Tony, she just needs to win herself a Grammy.
Considering how good Lange is at pretty much all things (and how amazing she sounded covering David Bowie’s “Life on Mars” in AHS: Freak Show), we are completely confident she’ll make that happen.
