A Brief Tribute by Doug Draper
Posted January 31st, 2026 on Niagara At Large
Farewell to Catherine O’Hara
How sad and shocking it was this past Friday, January 30th to turn on CBC radio to ‘breaking news’ that Catherine O’Hara, one of Canada’s most cherished actresses and comedians – loved by many in her own country and by so many others in the United States and around the world – died at age 71.
She was a hit in so many movies and television shows over the years, and possibly most of all for playing the ‘Mom’ desperately trying to get back home from a family vacation in France after realizing that, in their haste to get to the airport, the family had left behind their youngest son Kevin, played by Macaulay Culkin, in a film that has now become a Holiday Season classic, ‘Home Alone’.
Here is one of my favourite scenes in that 1990 movie, featuring Catherine O’Hara, and another late great Canadian comedian and actor John Candy as he and members of his polka band give her a lift in their van on her journey back home –
To watch it, click on the screen immediately below –
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R.I.P Catherine O’Hara. Your memory will live on through all of your good work
To read a brief statement from Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney on the passing of Catherine O’Hara, click on – https://www.pm.gc.ca/en/news/statements/2026/01/30/statement-prime-minister-carney-passing-catherine-ohara
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