HOLLYWOOD star Debbie Reynolds died saying she wanted to be with her daughter, Carrie Fisher, her son has said.
The 84-year-old died of a suspected stroke only a day after 60-year-old Fisher died on Tuesday.
Reynold’s son, Todd Fisher, made the announcement, saying: “She’s now with Carrie and we’re all heartbroken.
“She said, ‘I want to be with Carrie’,” he added. “And then she was gone.”
The 58-year-old actor and director spoke outside the Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre where Reynolds was taken by ambulance, saying his sister’s death was “too much” for their mother.
Emergency services were called at 1pm local time on Wednesday to her son’s Beverly Hills home, where they were making plans for Fisher’s funeral.
Fisher’s daughter, actress Billie Lourd, 24, was photographed on Wednesday in California with Scream Queens co-star Taylor Lautner just before her grandmother fell ill.
Reynolds was considered by many as “Hollywood royalty” with a decades-long career which began when she was just a teenager in the 1950 film Three Little Words.
However, she is perhaps best known for playing Kathy Selden in 1952 musical Singin’ In The Rain alongside Gene Kelly and Donald O’Connor.
She married musician Eddie Fisher in 1955 — her first of three marriages — and with him had children Carrie and Todd.
Their relationship ended on a sour note after it emerged he had an affair with her film star and friend Elizabeth Taylor, though she was later to rekindle her friendship with Taylor in later years.
Despite their separation, Reynolds continued to have a loving relationship with her ex-husband’s children, including Joely Fisher, 49, who posted a picture of herself and Reynolds on Instagram following her death.
Reynolds and daughter Carrie were said to have a tumultuous relationship, particularly during the young star’s first forays into show business as she battled drug and alcohol addiction.
However their bond grew stronger in later years and their homes shared the same grounds in Beverly Hills. In 2011 Fisher said she would be “happy” if she was like her mother “in any way”.
Shortly before her death, Reynolds had posted an emotional tribute to her daughter, saying: “Thank you to everyone who has embraced the gifts and talents of my beloved and amazing daughter. I am grateful for your thoughts and prayers that are now guiding her to her next stop. Love Carrie’s Mother.”
Joan Collins, who starred alongside Reynolds in These Old Broads, said she was “truly heartbroken” by the news, adding on Twitter that: “she was a wonderfully warm friend and colleague. Praying for Todd & Billie. #RIPDebbie”.
Star Trek actor William Shatner said: “It breaks my heart that she is gone. I’d hoped that my grieving was done for 2016.”
Debra Messing, who played Reynolds’s on-screen daughter in Will & Grace, wrote on Instagram: “Debbie went to be with Carrie.
“She always worried about her. Carrie left too soon and now they are together again.”
Actor Albert Brooks wrote: “Debbie Reynolds, a legend and my movie mom.
“I can’t believe this happened one day after Carrie. My heart goes out to Billie.”
Actor Rip Torn, who worked with Reynolds in her Las Vegas stage show, said: “I was blessed to work with this remarkable woman for 45 almost 50 years.
“That makes for a very rare bond and unique relationship. She was generous to a fault, never caring who got the laugh from the audience. I will always love her.”
Mia Farrow tweeted: “RIP doesn’t sound right for her or Carrie – I hope they’re somewhere having fun.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here