Oh Farrah, how we miss you

Almost four months have past since our beloved Farrah Fawcett passed away. The famous “Charlie’s Angels” star died after a long battle with anal cancer. To commemorate her life and struggle, long-time friend Alana Stewart produced a movie called “Farrah’s Story” and wrote a novel called “My Journey with Farrah.”

Released on May 15, 2009 on NBC, “Farrah’s Story” is an inside look at Fawcett’s struggle with cancer, and what helped her live through it. This is an inspiring work that shows the main reason Fawcett was able to endure cancer is because of the people that loved her.

However, rumors have begun to circulate about the profits from the documentary. Many accuse Alana Stewart as benefitting from her best friend’s story. The New York Post reported, “Upon her return to the United States [from accompanying Fawcett to Germany for cancer treatments], Stewart threatened to withhold the footage unless her ‘co-producer’ credit was upped to ‘producer’ and her compensation doubled to $200,000.”

When dealing with the death of icons like Fawcett, it is often difficult to determine when someone is creating a work to commemorate their life, or to profit off of their death.

Although Stewart claims she only received compensation for her expenses in creating the documentary, these allegations reveal something quite different, especially now after her recent release of “My Journey with Farrah.”

But, she was able to resolve some of those rumors when she recently appeared on ABC’s “The View” to promote her new novel. Stewart reiterated that she was only reimbursed for creating the documentary, which she says she created at Fawcett’s request. She also clarified the reason she wrote her novel was to share the Farrah she knew with the world.

This was a wonderful public relations tactic for Stewart. She was able to correct the rumors that she had profited immensely from the documentary, and to clearly state the reasons that she created the works. Also by appearing on ABC’s “The View,” Stewart reached the women that would be concerned and affected by Fawcett’s story. She ended her visit by giving each member of the audience a copy of “My Journey with Farrah,” another smart promotional tactic. Good job Stewart.