Anne Francis.

September 16, 1930 - January 2, 2011

Anne Francis was such a wonderful actress and person. And although she lived a full and long life-- her death has still come as a shock. Honey West was never supposed to die.

How can I put into words the extreme coolness, awesomeness, and groundbreaking nature of Anne Francis?!

She starred in many films and televisions shows (her + Twilight Zone = instant classic), but she was really Honey West to me. 

Honey West was a brilliant, but short-lived series in the 60's. It starred Anne Francis as the title character: a judo-fighting, gun-wielding, fearless private detective...with a pet ocelot named Bruce.

This was a revolutionary show in America (and only just behind Honor Blackman in The Avengers in Britain). And it is awesome. Anne Francis perfectly embodied Honey West. And I hate to sound stupidly cliched, but she is seriously an icon and "role-model" for girls. She's completely fun and cool (and wears the coolest 60's clothes EVER), but not afraid to assert herself and maybe even take down the bad guy single-handedly. She's awesome.

In the above video she takes down Kevin McCarthy...and then remembers to stop and comb her hair before she leaves the room. (What you may see in the corner of this clip is another body she had disposed of before Kevin came into the room.)

While this is a television character, it is also completely Anne Francis. In everything she ever appeared in she brought energy and coolness. She was a brilliant actress.

She will be missed.

-Meg

originally published on ClassicForever on January 3, 2011

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