Molly Ivins Dies at 62
Wed, 01/31/2007 - 10:59pm
- "I dearly love the state of Texas, but I consider that a harmless perversion on my part, and discuss it only with consenting adults."
- Molly Ivins, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, March 1, 1992
Molly Ivins passed away today, after battling breast cancer for seven years.
Molly will likely be most remembered for using her biting wit to skewer the status quo of politics, something for which she had a remarkable talent. Personally, I can't help thinking that doesn't do her justice.
After Molly's first bout with breast cancer, she wrote a piece for TIME on her experience with the fight. The piece is striking in its humanity, its tacit admission of vulnerability from someone whose public persona seemed nearly indomitable. Most of us know someone who had to fight the same fight Molly did; I could not imagine a better spokesperson for the cause. The article cemented my image of Molly Ivins, not as a political giant-killer, but as an icon of Texas womanhood -- fiery and opinionated, but tempered with a clever wit, and backed with the sort of honest warmth that would endear her to friends and enemies alike. It's easy to understand why she and Ann Richards got along so well, why the stories they would tell of each other embedded themselves so easily into the web of Texas folklore.
Our condolences and prayers go out to Molly Ivins' family. A little bit of sunshine has been taken away from Texas. Molly Ivins will be deeply missed.
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When I First Heard About Molly
By Patrick M McLeod
Thu, 02/01/2007 - 11:27am
When I first heard this news last night, the first person I called was my mom. The article you mentioned in Time was one of the first things that my mom asked me to find for her when she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2001. My parents had been big Molly Ivins fans since her days at the Texas Observer, and my mom knew that if Molly could make it through breast cancer, she could do it, too. I thought it was very telling, but not at all surprising, that what Molly had to say about her experience in fighting breast cancer and being a survivor meant more to my mom than what her doctors had to say about it.
Her tribute to a long time friend of my family's (and a Texas legal legend), Warren Burnett, was right up there with Gary Cartwright's obituary for him in Texas Monthly in terms of doing what Molly's writing always did best...frame with humor and candor the complex and often troubled lives of Texans. I'll remember her moreso for these kinds of articles and columns than I will for her seemingly effortless eviscerations of George W. Bush and his cronies.
With her passing, we've seen the passing of an unrivaled generation of Texas women: Barbara Jordan, Ann Richards and now Molly Ivins. Although Molly never held elected office like Barbara and Ann, I don't think it's inappropriate to put her up there with them in terms of importance.
When I called my mom last night, we did what I suspect many people did across Texas and across the nation; there was a lot of sadness, but we didn't dwell on it. We swapped Molly Ivins stories we both knew (and both had heard from one another many times before) and reminisced, which you can't do without laughing. I think that's how Molly would have wanted all of us to mark her passing, not with sadness, but with fond memories and laughter.