In a rare public appearance, Kathleen Turner was recently spotted in Downtown Manhattan.
The 69-year-old actress, known for movies like Romancing the Stone, was seen walking the New York streets with a cane, seemingly in good spirits despite her mobility challenges.
Clad in a long overcoat, black pants, and trainers, Turner was seen on Chinatown’s Canal Street, maintaining some anonymity in the lowkey outfit.
This sighting comes after a five-month hiatus from public events, with her last appearance at a screening of Bradley Cooper’s Maestro.
The icon suffers from rheumatoid arthritis, an autoimmune disease that affects the joints and organs.
She said of the onset of the illness in 1993 that: ‘I couldn’t walk. I couldn’t hold a glass. The only way I could go up and down stairs was on my butt, pushing myself. The pain is very bad because there’s no way to sit, lie or stand that allows you to escape it. People don’t understand because it’s not life-threatening. It will not kill me, but it kills your life.’
Turner, who made a name for herself as a leading lady in the 1980s and 90s, starred alongside Hollywood heavyweights like Michael Douglas and Danny DeVito and was in a string of major films including Body Heat, War of the Roses, and The Jewel of the Nile.
While Turner certainly looks different than she did in her most iconic films, she said in 2019 that she has no problem with the inevitable changes in her appearance.
She shared in 2019 that she was ‘ageing rather well,’ insisting that she doesn’t want to ‘be a Cher, where her face never changes or moves.’
Turner, who lives as a single woman in NYC since she divorced real estate tycoon Jay Weiss in 2007, remains dedicated to charitable endeavors, frequently attending events like Citymeals On Wheels’ Annual Power Lunch.
The Oscar nominee has one daughter, 36-year-old singer Rachel Ann Weiss.
Turner is also known for playing Chandler’s transgender father on Friends, a role that she recently said she wouldn’t take today.
A caller into Andy Cohen’s Watch What Happens Live show asked Kathleen: ‘How much did [you] love playing Chandler’s father on Friends?’
Andy Cohen said: ‘That was really groundbreaking!’
She laughed and clarified: ‘Well, yes – and of course, I wouldn’t do it now because there would be real people able to do it.’
That’s not the only revelation the star has shared about her past work, telling Stellar Magazine last year that she had ‘sexual tension’ with co-star Michael Douglas.
She said: ‘Look, I love the man, but he is old-fashioned’
‘I give [his wife] Catherine [Zeta-Jones, his wife] all the credit in the world. She has done a great job with him.’
‘He would never, ever have supported having another star, at that point, in his life,’ she went on to claim about the possibility of a romance with the actor. ‘And that would never have worked’.
Taylor is also known for her Oscar nomination for her leading part in Peggy Sue Got Married, several more films in the 2000s, and guest appearances on shows like Law and Order and Rick and Morty.
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