Actress Rachel Brosnahan pays tribute to aunt Kate Spade: 'This is how she would want to be remembered'
The news of Kate Spade’s death by apparent suicide has led to innumerable headlines dissecting her life and personal struggles. But the designer’s niece, actress Rachel Brosnahan, wants people to remember Spade in a different way.
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel star and House of Cards alum, 27, broke her silence about her famous aunt’s passing. “Knowing Katy, this is how she would want to be remembered,” began the post, featuring a video of a smiling and merry Kate with her husband and business partner, Andy Spade, dancing to a mariachi band next to a Christmas tree.
A post shared by Rachel Brosnahan (@rachelbrosnahan) on Jun 6, 2018 at 4:32am PDT
She ended the post by urging her followers to “hug your loved ones extra tight.”
Brosnahan’s grandmother, June, is Kate’s mother. In a 2017 interview with WWD, Rachel said she admired fashion “from afar” but added that “people around me have said that I’ve inherited little pieces of Katy’s style. For example, I love a good shoe and a good bag, and I know that she was largely influenced by my grandmother, her mother, June. Who actually, fun fact, Midge is slightly inspired by.”
It was a mutual admiration society. The famed handbag designer told Page Six in January that she and her daughter, Frances, 13, jumped up and down when Brosnahan won the Golden Globe for The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. “We are insanely proud,” Kate said.
Kate’s brother-in-law, David Spade, who is Andy’s brother, also paid tribute with a holiday photo. He wrote that even though it was “fuzzy,” he was sharing it because “we had so much fun that day.” David called her “sharp and quick on her feet,” noting, “She could make me laugh so hard,” which is quite a compliment from a famous comedian. Clearly in shock, he urged people in this “rough world” to take care of each other.
A post shared by David Spade (@davidspade) on Jun 5, 2018 at 5:27pm PDT
Kate was found dead Tuesday morning in her Manhattan home by a housekeeper. She left behind a note, reportedly leaving a message for her only child. Her family members issued a statement saying they were “devastated by today’s tragedy” and that they “loved Kate dearly and will miss her terribly.”
Since then, stories about her haven’t stopped. Multiple reports state she was having trouble in her marriage. And some of her family members are at odds over her death after her older sister, Reta Brosnahan Saffo, issued statements saying she believes the designer suffered from mental illness for a number of years and that her sister’s suicide “was not unexpected by me.”
All that noise makes Brosnahan’s post even more powerful. If Kate would “want to be remembered” as a smiling, dancing, happy, and clearly in love woman, that’s something we can get behind.
Watch: Kate Spade on selling company, raising daughter, and returning to fashion
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