Streep Honors Fonda at AFI
Friday, June 6, 2014 at 8:32PM 
To your left you'll see Meryl Streep speaking about Jane Fonda at the AFI ceremony in her honor which will be broacast on television next Saturday night. (A post birthday weekend treat!)
It's funny because I strike this exact same pose of joyous reverie and 'I can't even believe this exists' prayer-eyes enthusiasm when I speak about Jane Fonda's best work! (In fact, maybe we should do Fonda once we're done with Seasons of Bette?)
Meryl Streep is one of many stars that showed up and there are already several articles floating around about the highlights but I shan't read them because I like to watch these things like a virgin and pretend it's live television and we're all experiencing it together for the first time. But it's true I cheated a little to watch this sneak peek of Meryl talking about her first onscreen appearance in Julia (1977), a debut I've written about previously.
But here's one more Streep photo with the best caption lolz.
The Tribute special will air Saturday June 14th at 9 PM ET/PT on TNT with encores on TCM.
AFI, Jane Fonda, Julia, Meryl Streep
Reader Comments (41)
FONDA FRIDAYS
Yes to Fonda Fridays! Can't wait see Jane's tribute.
Apart from a few individual performances, I can never understand the cult of Fonda (unless we're talking Henry). So I'd totally be down for a Seasons of Jane. Because I'm definitely curious.
No living legends please. Only a completed filmography.
Hm, how about Ingrid Bergman? Coincidentally, her credits as an actress also span 52 entries at IMDb. This includes a bit of TV work of course, but Anne Marie seems to count that for Katharine Hepburn as well.
In any case, don't forget the article on Elizabeth Taylor's first Oscar win. I finally want to see someone defending the slut of all time.
Jane Fonda has 7 Oscar nominations (6 lead, 1 support). As you did with Streep, I would enjoy seeing a breakdown of each Oscar line-up. She never went head-to-head with Meryl so that gives us 6 lead actress races that don't often get discussed, and one supporting race (1981) that could potentially be a Smackdown later in the year.
I remember Jane sharing a great story about Katharine Hepburn and how many Oscars they each had when they were both nominated for On Golden Pond. Prior to the ceremony, Fonda had 2 and Hepburn had 3. If Fonda had won, she would have tied Hepburn's total, but that was not to be. Instead, Hepburn ended up winning her fourth and, as Fonda says, she saw fit to call Fonda afterwards and let her know 'You won't catch me now!'.
Streep honors Fonda? Really? I resent your headline.
willy - there's definitely ingrid bergman stuff coming. 2015 is her centennial
I used to follow Jane's career from The Chase (with Redford/Brando) / Barefoot in the Park years to her China Syndrome /Electric Horseman period and then Morning After/Old Gringo - after which she married Ted Turner and 'retired'. I love her performances especially in The Shoot Horses and Dollmaker. What a brilliant actress and a formidable activist (and yes also a fitness guru)! Love her to bits:)
Seasons of Gena? Her birthday being in almost two weeks...
A FONDA OSCAR LINE UP FRIDAY WOULD BE GR8!!!
86 you could tell us again why Turner deserved the oscar.
Count me IN for Jane Fonda features, but maybe don't limit yourself to Oscar? She has so many fun roles that never came close to a nomination. For every Klute or They Shoot Horses Don't They there's a gem like Barbarella and Cat Ballou.
I think a series on Fonda would be great. Not just because it would include her three films with Redford either.
Geez, I've actually only seen two films of Jane Fonda and they were Barbarella and Monster-In-Law. *lol*
So much to catch up asap.
But both Barbarella and Monster In Law were highly entertaining, especially the former.
DEATH BY BUDGERIGARS!!!
Why does Meryl hate Sally?
I know there must be a good joke on that picture, but I can't see it....
@Sonja
They're tied in Best Actress Oscar wins. And both won their first Oscars at the same ceremony. Streep has only a Supporting Actress Oscar separating them.
@Sonja--Love Monster-In-Law. So fun.
@Sonja I think it's just that meryl's smile looks sort of forced, so she's pretending to be happy to be next to sally, therefore she hates her actually.
Sonja: it's just the look on her face. Say what you will about Doubt, but Meryl has never given a worse performance than she does in that photo.
@all
LMFAO.
Okay, then they simply "hate" each other because Sally's smile looks even more "forced".
Sorry people, I don't take this very serious.
I was just curious, because I didn't understand it. ;)
@TB
It is.
I've never seen Julia, but always wanted to.
Hopefuly some day...
I'm not too fond of Fonda. Granted, I've only seen two of her films--'Coming Home' and 'The Morning After,' in which she was mediocre and bad, respectively. Moreover, she often opines on what she thinks should win during awards season, and I really question her taste. Reese Witherspoon in 'Walk the Line,' Natalie Portman in 'Black Swan' and L'enfant terrible for 'Silver Linings Playbook' are some of her past favorites. :/
One terribly overrated actress saluting another!
Amen Lynn.
I don't see why they are overrated hasn't each of these actresses in decades past proved undoubted capabilities in the field which they chose to pursue,do they really need your validation.
Jane Fonda's performance in KLUTE has got to be one of the top 5 greatest female performances ever!
A Jane Fonda film retrospect would be awesome tying in Seasons of Bette and Streep at 60 ;)
@Mike M--Writing off Jane Fonda based on those two films would basically be like writing off Meryl Streep after only seeing Ironweed and Mamma Mia. You could, but you'd only be shortchanging yourself.
I'm so tired of people bashing Reese Witherspoon in Walk the Line and Natalie Portman in Black Swan.
Reese won the NSFC and the NYFCC Award in 2005 for Walk the Line as well as a ton of regional critics' awards. She has a hell of lot more justifying her Oscar than, say, Matthew McConaughey does. Granted, she hasn't done much since then, but maybe that's changing.
Personally, I thought Portman was incredible in Black Swan - easily one of my favorite winners of the decade in a great film, and she HAS done a lot since her win, producing her first film, working with Malick on two films, and deciding to direct her first film - all after she moved to Paris, had a child, and got married.
I thought Portmans win was universally thought of as a deserving winner,am i wrong.
Here's my ranking of Fonda's Oscar nominated performances just because:
1. The China Syndrome (1979)
2. Julia (1977)
3. They Shoot Horses, Don't They? (1969)
4. On Golden Pond (1981)
5. Coming Home (1978)
6. Klute (1971)
7. The Morning After (1986)
My favorite film of hers will probably always be Nine to Five (1980) and I'm happy she won the AFI Award. The fact that she's only the eighth female recipient since they started in 1973 is a little disgusting. But she is the second in three years!
Portman's win was beloved at the time but it hasn't aged well.
Why.
@mark: Because people saw "Black Swan" by now (but not when it came out).
@Suzanne: Getting tons of precursors do not make an Oscar more validated. It just makes a bigger amount of undeserved awards (as of lately Hilary Swank, Jennifer Hudson and Jean Dujardin won almost everything they were nominated for).
Stop bitching around and watch more movies with Jane Fonda!*
*It's OK to watch movies prior to 1992.
Portman was great why are people now saying her win wasn't deserved.
Ugh this reminded me of how awful "Julia" is, save for Redgrave's miraculous performance. Would love to see a Fonda look back though!
Suzanne -- I follow Jane Fonda religiously and she loves everyone she meets, which is kind of great at her age. It gives me hope. Maybe, when I turn 70, I'll be finally OK with certain Oscar wins.
@mark
Portman's Oscar was based on the misinformed belief she did most of her own stunt choreography. She did not. But the controversy came too late in the season to matter. Everyone was rooting for her except the Bening and Kidman supporters. Funny how Jennifer Lawrence has become the default for the Academy when back then she was just a pretty face with the good fortunate of being nominated in that legendary lineup.
Oh god, stop bashing great actresses, per se Fonda and Streep!
And how come you can say Jennifer Lawrence as L'Enfant Terrible? That's just cruel, and Portman's, Reese's and her win are deserved
I wonder if she's ever rejected a part in a Woody Allen film. Their careers seem to run parallel and strangely enough* they've never met. Anyone knows?
* Considering Allen casts almost anyone with a SAG card and a popular name.
The fact that Jane Fonda may have picked the Best Actress for each year (Reese, Natalie, etc.) different from who we root for or believe should have won does not make her any less cogent or competent an actress. With due respect, to someone she may be terribly overrated but to another (like myself), she's just superb especially in They shoot horses, Klute, China Syndrome, even The Morning After (although the movie was awful). I remember mentioning how much I dislike Shelley Duvall and there's one person here who said he/she really liked her, and that makes me smile because there's nothing better than diversity of opinion. It's one thing to cast your opinion, it's another to bash someone with impunity.
It's amazing the amount of hateful comments that she still generates in 2014. She was recently on Conan and the Facebook page of the show was full of insults. Like it or not, Jane Fonda is an essential American actress. Essential.
Oh, I'm pretty sure both Jane AND Meryl know people find them overrated. They just don't care. (Jane also voted for her for TIL openly-so one more to hate)
Salut, ladies!