Remembering Debbie Reynolds – her most iconic moments in photos

Debbie was born in Texas on April 1, 1932, and moved with her family to California as a young girl. She was a pageant queen in her teens and went on to win a contract with Warner Bros. as a result.

Debbie’s first major role was in Three Little Words with Fred Astaire in 1950, which earned her a Golden Globe for Most Promising Newcomer. She then became a household name at 20 after starring in 1952’s Singin’ in the Rain with Gene Kelly and Donald O’Connor, and shared that she had to work hard for the part.

“I was just lucky. I didn’t have to be a well-trained actress…I was 17 and certainly had no training. But if the part is you, and you aren’t afraid – and I wasn’t afraid – I didn’t feel you could fail,” she told the American Film Institute.

Debbie fell in love with pop star Eddie Fisher in the ’50s and married him in 1955, before welcoming their two children, Carrie and Todd.

The couple were close friends with Elizabeth Taylor and her then-husband, Mike Todd, and they comforted the Cleopatra star when Mike died in a plane crash in 1958.

While providing comfort to Elizabeth, Eddie fell in love with the actress, which spurred him to leave Debbie for her.

“I was the last to find out about the affair,” the blonde beauty told The Daily Mail. “There had been hints in the papers, and I had noticed that when I turned up at functions or parties on my own, my friends were whispering.” 

Debbie and Eddie divorced in 1959, and he married Elizabeth that same year.

Elizabeth and Eddie’s betrayal caused a sea of heartbreak for Debbie, which took years to recover from.

Decades later, well after Elizabeth and Eddie had divorced, the women finally reconciled when they realized they were traveling on the same ship. “I sent a note to her room, and she sent a note back to mine saying that we should have dinner and get this over with and have a good time,” Debbie told PopEater.

“Because we were very good friends when we were 17 and went to school together on the MGM lot. And we had a wonderful evening with a lot of laughs.” They remained friends until Elizabeth’s death in 2011.

A career high for Debbie came in 1965 when she was nominated for an Oscar for The Unsinkable Molly Brown, proving that she wasn’t going anywhere.

Debbie was married to Harry Karl from 1960 until 1973, and while their union was initially happy, it eventually came to light that he was both unfaithful and had spent a large chunk of her money on gambling.

“[Karl] presented initially as someone who would take care of her and she wouldn’t have to learn about money,” Carrie Fisher told Vanity Fair. “That was her Achilles’ heel, letting men have the final say.”

Debbie then fell in love with her third husband, Richard Hamlett, in the early ’80s, and they married in 1984. Despite their strong connection, Richard was also unfaithful to Debbie and left her in financial ruin when their marriage ended in 1996, as he had convinced her to bankroll a Vegas casino, which went under.

The actress even called him the “devil” in her 2013 memoir, Unsinkable. “I have very poor taste in men, and I married all the wrong men. I’ve never found the right man and never hope to at this age. I think that it’s too late. That boat has sailed,” she later told The Express.

Debbie’s memorable role in the 1998 Disney classic Halloweentown introduced her to a whole new generation of fans and cemented her as a beloved star.

During Carrie’s 20s, when she was grappling with the fame that came from her role as Princess Leia in Star Wars, Debbie and her daughter didn’t speak for an entire decade.

“My lowest point in Carrie and my relationship was probably when we discovered that she [had bipolar disorder], or that she had this mental health problem, and that it was going to be with her forever,” she told Oprah. 

“That was very hard. How is she going to get along in life? How can I help her in life? All I could do is love her, and always shall.”

Thankfully, they worked through their troubles and even lived next door to each other for the last 15 years of their lives.

Debbie passed away on December 28, 2016, from a stroke, just one day after Carrie died following a cardiac arrest. Debbie was 84 years old, and according to her son, her final words were “I want to be with Carrie”.