Martin Short turned part of his touring act into a farewell for Catherine O’Hara on Friday night, leading a toast during his show in Austin just hours after her death became public. At Bass Concert Hall, Short and Steve Martin paused “The Best of Steve Martin and Martin Short,” projected a photo of O’Hara behind them, raised champagne and clinked glasses as the audience erupted into applause.
“Catherine O’Hara, I met when she was 18 years of age,” Short told the crowd, then called her “the greatest, most brilliant, kindest, sweetest angel that any of us worked with,” according to video from the room and published accounts. O’Hara died on Jan. 30 in Los Angeles after a brief illness, representatives said.
The onstage tribute landed because their history runs deep. Short and O’Hara came up through The Second City in Toronto before appearing together on SCTV, a pipeline that produced a generation of North American comedy talent. O’Hara later became a staple of studio comedy, including Home Alone, then reached a new peak playing Moira Rose on Schitt’s Creek, a performance that earned Emmy and Golden Globe recognition.
Tributes kept building through the weekend. Eugene Levy said “words seem inadequate” while mourning a collaborator and friend of more than 50 years. Dan Levy wrote that he would “cherish every funny memory” he made with her. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney called her “a legend,” framing her work as part of Canada’s cultural export story. Short and Martin, who share the screen on Only Murders in the Building, resumed their set after the toast, leaving the crowd with a simple image: a photograph, two raised glasses, and a room processing the news together.
