Rob Frydlewicz: AIDS Drama, "Andre's Mother", Airs on PBS, March 7, 1990

When I read of actress Sada Thompson's death last week I was disappointed that her obituary in the New York Times didn't mention her starring role in the movie Andre's Mother.

Co-starring Richard Thomas and Sylvia Sidney, the movie aired on PBS on March 7, 1990. Acclaimed gay playwright Terrence McNally wrote the screenplay which won an Emmy Award.

In the movie Thompson portrayed a grieving mother dealing with her son Andre's death from AIDS. The story focused on her anger and how she rebuffed attempts made by his partner (played by Thomas) to reach out to her. Sidney played her mother, Andre's understanding grandmother. (Interestingly, she had a similar role in the 1985 TV movie An Early Frost.)

The movie had a lovely ending in which friends of Andre - including his mother and his partner - gathered in Central Park to celebrate his life by releasing white balloons into the Manhattan skyline.

I was on a date the night of the movie and we watched it together at my date's beautiful penthouse apartment on Christopher St. At the time he was in the middle of some drama with his Parisian ex-boyfriend and that ultimately was the reason nothing further developed between us. Nonetheless, it was fun watching the movie with him.

For more posts like this, Rob also has a blog called ZeitGAYst.