PHOTOS COURTESY OF RUSSELL LAFRENIERECROSSING THE LINE
82 WINTER 2019 MOVIEMAKER.COM
“I
THOUGHTS FOR
OUR PENNY
Penny Marshall (October 15, 1943-December 17, 2018)
BY RUSSELL LAFRENIERE
“
SHE NEVER DEMANDED RESPECT,
BUT INSTEAD COMMANDED IT.
”
F IT WERE
EASY everyone
would do it.”
It’s one of the
many lessons I
was fortunate enough to learn
from Penny Marshall over the
last few years while work-
ing with her. I will forever be
grateful to have had the time I
spent with Penny—who was an
inspiration and a true friend.
Penny led a life that many of
us can only dream about. She
not only chased her dreams, but
caught them, and shared them
with the world. She lived life out
loud and was never afraid to say
what was on her mind. That’s one
of her qualities I’ll miss the most.
She was strong, compassionate,
and had a sense of humor like no
one else I’ve ever met. She never
demanded respect, but instead
commanded it.
To be honest, I was terrified
the first time I met Penny. I had
somehow convinced her to come
aboard and direct Rodman,
a documentary I had been
producing on the trials and tribu-
lations of NBA Hall of Famer
Dennis Rodman. I was this kid in
his mid-20s, who had no major
accolades or résumé that would
justify her accepting the project.
Miraculously, though, she
did... but with one challenging
stipulation. We had to film at the
Hall of Fame while Dennis was
being inducted. That was a big
problem. We had no budget to
support this, and the ceremony
was just a week away. Looking
back, maybe this was a test, or
maybe it was fate. A childhood
friend came to my rescue and
footed the bill to help me get
Penny on board.
She flew into Boston that
following week and told us she’d
be staying the night at her friend
Mark’s place, and Mark would
then drive her to Springfield,
where the ceremony was held.
Speaking as a producer, I was
glad, since it saved me some
cash on a town car and hotel. My
friend Tom—not a Tom anyone
would ever know, or had ever
heard of—put up the budget. Her
friend Mark, on the other hand,
turned out to be Mark Wahlberg.
But to Penny, it was just her
friend Mark. It was all so surreal,
yet very much happening, and
there was no turning back.
The experience was intimi-
dating and a dream come true
all at once, and I began to feel
my insecurities creep up on me.
The moment we met, though,
she put all my nerves at ease.
Aside from my grandfather,
Penny Marshall is the only other
person to ever call me “Rusty.”
And who was I to correct her?
For many, Penny will always
be remembered as the spitfire
Laverne DeFazio from the 1970ssitcom Laverne & Shirley. For me,
it was Penny’s work behind the
camera that was her most extraor-
dinary. In an industry dominated
by men, she not only got her foot
in the door as a director, but
kicked it wide open, becoming the
first female director to break the
$100-million mark at the box office
with her 1988 Tom Hanks-starring
coming-of-age classic Big. She later
re-teamed with Hanks, and shat-
tered more glass ceilings with
her 1992 comedy about the
World War II-era All-American
Girls Professional Baseball League,
A League of Their Own. In a depar-ture from comedy, her 1990 film
Awakenings was nominated for a
Best Picture Oscar.
Penny Marshall’s name
will forever be spoken of with
reverence when it comes to her
contributions to moviemak-
ing. But her legacy extends far
beyond what she did in front of
or behind any camera. Penny
was a proud and loving mother,
daughter, grandmother, and
sister, and her greatest body of
work lies in the friendships she
cultivated throughout her life’s
journey. She could go toe to toe
with just about anyone in any
professional situation, but in
her personal life there wasn’t
anything she wouldn’t do for
her family and friends.
A New York native, Penny
was one of the Yankees’ biggest
super-fans. You couldn’t beat the
Bronx out of that woman with aPENNY MARSHALL (L) EMBRACES RODMAN PRODUCER RUSSELL LAFRENIERE (R)
WITH COOL SHADES AND A WARM SMILE