She was a majorette. "When we lost her, it was really devastating to me, and I was having a lot of trouble dealing with it.". Susan Harling-Robinson was the inspiration for the play and movie "Steel Magnolias", written by her brother Robert Harling. A system error has occurred. To use this feature, use a newer browser. Be sure to SHARE this article if you love the play and film, Steel Magnolias! Glad u enjoyed your trip too! They were just flummoxedI wasnt a writer. Gainesville, Alachua County, Florida, USA. The film, shot entirely on location in Natchitoches in the summer of 1988, celebrates the strength and indomitable spirit of Southern women. His mother is duly immortalised as MLynn Eatenton whose hair is said to closely resemble a teased brown football helmet while his fathers character is called Drum. The scenery was gorgeous, and the company was fantastic! She had on that white cashmere sweater with the marabou around the neck, and she was just swinging, cool as a cucumber. At the early stages of readings, I was attached, and when the play was finally produced, it came with me. My mother was a nurse and Susan wanted to be a paediatric nurse, she wanted to be around babies.. Im not a hairdresser. She directed the Youth Choir. You are nearing the transfer limit for memorials managed by Find a Grave. I had to beg her to let me take this photo, and she refused to smile, but I think I captured the essence of Tracee-Truvy of All Tangled Up! They saw what I was going through, and Michael suggested I write something. ROBERT HARLING Susan was incredibly supportive after I came to New York. Andit was a Christmas in August for the film, The Christmas festival scene was shot during the summer, with everyone wearing sweaters, fur and ski parkas in 100-degree heat. This browser does not support getting your location. We did a reading of it at a small off-Broadway theater, the WPA, which had an amazing reputation. ", 5. We have set your language to Robert Harling, the author and creator of Steel Magnolias, lost his sister Susan Harling-Robinson, from diabetic complications. Quick as a flash, he was, Read More Chapter 6 The CaptainContinue, Crew-change day was there before I knew it and time to embark on a new adventure. She was determined to have the family she'd always dream of. . Sad that he also wanted to be a NICU doctor, but never went on to specialize, because he had the love of his life that took up his time, and she was so much more important! Please ensure you have given Find a Grave permission to access your location in your browser settings. My mother would always say to handle magnolia blossoms carefully because they bruise so easily. Susan wanted to take care of everything, she wanted everything to be fine and everyone protected Robert was No 1. I dont get their show down here, but they put everything on their YouTube channel. The play came out at breakneck speed and had its first production in February 1987. The feedback was Its not commercial because its a bunch of women and it takes place in a beauty parlor, but well send it out. Well, all these people wanted to do it. She loved being around all those babies and dreamed of one day having a big noisy house full of kids. Inscription. ROBERT HARLING Tom Skerritt was two houses down from where my father lived, so I had my fake father, Drum, out picking up sticks from a storm in the yard with his khakis rolled up, and there was my real father in his yard doing the same thing. Robert Harling reveals: 'Susan died in the fall of 1985. As manager of this memorial you can add or update the memorial using the Edit button below. Its honest all the way down. You might need some tissues to watch this emotional clip from Steel Magnolias: the true metaphor behind Steel Magnolia., Soda Really Does Taste Better In A Glass Bottle, Leonardo DiCaprio Donates $100 Million Towards Wildlife Conservation. As the years have gone by, there are a lot of lines that get quoted back to me. Required fields are marked *. 25 Feb/23. Please enter your email address and we will send you an email with a reset password code. They were looking at both Laura Dern and Winona Ryder when the casting director insisted they saw Julia who was then filming Mystic Pizza. Susan had Type 1 diabetes. At the corner of Pine and Cypress streets is a small memorial park dedicated to Susan Harling Robinson, whose name may not mean anything to you, but the film her story inspired almost certainly will. It sounds like something her granddaddy might have called her as a kid. Twenty-five years ago, "Steel Magnolias" captivated moviegoers with the heartbreaking, yet laugh-filled story based on how playwright Robert Harling lost his sister, Susan Harling Robinson, in 1985, and how a group of women in a small southern town cope with their tragic loss. This year marks the thirtieth anniversary of, I had two dear friends, Kathy and Michael Weller. And shes the only one who didnt sweat. So over dinner one night at Orso [the evergreen New York theater district restaurant], he said, Rawbuht, how would you feel about Sally Field playing your muthuh? I couldnt speak. And, like Shelby, the character based on her and portrayed by Julia Roberts in STEEL MAGNOLIAS she twirled her batons to the music of Hawaii Five-O. Harling said that he was particularly touched by one email from a fan of the movie, who was inspired to donate his kidney to a neighbor in need. Please click on the images to see larger version and to read the original captions. Previously sponsored memorials or famous memorials will not have this option. ", 6. So many people dont know the film is based on a true story. - Playwright Robert Harling wrote the play STEEL MAGNOLIAS shortly after the death of his beloved sister Susan Robinson aged just 33 in 1985. I went okay job done, mission accomplished. Robert had a cameo, playing the minister who marries Shelby, and he gives a fascinating insight into how Julia Roberts came to join the stellar cast. Make sure that the file is a photo. She in no way resembled the character, he says. They married in 1979. Thanks for the update. Harling will be attending an upcoming Atlanta production of the play, which will be the first time the write will see the work since he's lost all the women who inspired the play and movie. SHIRLEY MACLAINE I loved studying the townspeople and walking through their lives a little. I thought you might like to see a memorial for Laura Susan Harling Robinson I found on Findagrave.com. Susan Harling-Robinson was the inspiration for the play and movie "Steel Magnolias", written by her brother Robert Harling. "She flashed that smile and that was my sister. Pat, my ex-brother-in-law, he remarried five or six months after her death and the first time I heard. What a beautiful tribute Robert gave to his mother. Softly spoken and with a Southern accent that still hints at his Louisiana upbringing, Robert Harling wrote the play Steel Magnolias shortly after the death of his beloved sister Susan Robinson aged just 33 in 1985. I put money into it and Connie Shulman [the actress who played Annelle] did, and Bobbys family did too. But there was just something about the name that fit., ROBERT HARLING All the characters were based on real people, Mamas friends. 2007-2023 Garden & Gun Magazine LLC. The women are getting it done and the guys cannot function. And then one of the men walked into the kitchen, and I saw how the womens body language completely changed. Julia Roberts was only 22 years old when the film was . Herbert said, Its a wonderful Hollywood move. Shelby was based on Robert Harling's real sister, Susan Harling Robinson, who passed away from complications due to her type 1 diabetes. SHIRLEY MACLAINE It was really hot. I was watching the men in the den, and they were a mess. She said, Oh, no, its a bed and breakfast and Im the hired slave! Turns out, she is the caretaker for the Samuel Guy House, which is a fantastic story for another post. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/8696788/laura-susan-robinson. Thanks for reading! Are you sure that you want to delete this photo? And as I promised in the previous story, after the fishing trip I went a few blocks from Chateau St. Denis over to All Tangled Up to get my hat-hair repaired. Now comes the true metaphor behind Steel Magnolia.What does it mean? It made the nightly news. ROBERT HARLING Part of the deal was that I would get the first crack at the screenplay. ', It was beyond a dream that Steel Magnolias would be turned into a Hollywood movie. Its the oldest town in the Louisiana Purchase. By everyone that knew her! After the play had some success and everybody from Natchitoches went up to New York to see it, I was really worried because Ouisers such a crotchety old curmudgeon. Are you sure that you want to remove this flower? Susan H. Robinson. ", 13. This relationship is not possible based on lifespan dates. Robert Harling reveals: 'Susan died in the fall of 1985. Ray called and said, Olympias doing Clairee. I knew Olympia from her work in New York theater, so I knew she could do anything, but I was worried that she wasnt Southern. What people dont understand is that its honest even below what they see as a story. She loved it. Garden & Gun is a registered trademark. Harling did not tell his parents he had written the play until just before it opened at the WPA, but hed sent versions back and forth to his brother, John, who was working in Philadelphia. "She would do something completely inappropriate and totally out of the box. If you dont tell them, I will.. "It became a play because I wanted to hear the dialogue. It has a sense of history you could never capture in Pasadena. But when you put it in a theatrical situation, people respond to the honesty of it. Robert admits he had no idea there was any comedy in the play until audiences started laughing. Filmed in his hometown, Robert says: I dont care what people say I wrote down what I heard. Weve updated the security on the site. Even as a young child, Susans career goal was to follow in her mother Margarets footsteps and become a nurse. Upon her graduation from the NSU School of Nursing, Susan became a pediatric nurse and resided in Shreveport. Complications ensued. 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