The Dead to Me star, making her first public appearance since her multiple sclerosis diagnosis last year, debuted her walking stick at Monday’s event, but leaned on her Married … With Children TV mom Katey Sagal, who helped Applegate to the podium and physically supported her during her speech.
Applegate — also known for the Anchorman films and TV’s Jesse and Up All Night, to name a few— cracked jokes during her speech and did not directly mention the disease of the central nervous system. However, she alluded to the diagnosis she received in the summer of 2021, referring to herself at one point as “the disabled lady.” Later, while thanking “the most important person in the world,” her daughter, Sadie, with her musician husband, Martyn LeNoble.
Applegate also suggested, as she’s hinted previously, that she’s done with acting as she navigates her health challenges.
Applegate said that growing up in L.A., and getting her showbiz start as a young girl, she always “effing” wanted her own star. Feldman praised her as a “comic genius and and one of the greatest actors of her generation.”
Sagal, whom Applegate still calls “Mommy,” it was revealed, spoke of Applegate’s grace and bravery overcoming her challenges, also including a breast cancer diagnosis in 2008.
Applegate was seated by her star — which is adjacent to those of Sagal and Married dad Ed O’Neill, who was unable to attend — as it was unveiled, playfully doing a little seated dance with her new cane that she shared a sneak peek of on Twitter last month. She later got down onto the ground for photos — solo shots as well as photos with her co-stars, past and present, and husband and daughter.
Applegate expressed nervousness ahead of attending the event, which was supposed to take place in 2020 but was delayed by the pandemic.
Applegate also spoke about her health, saying production shut down on Dead to Me for five months last year after her diagnosis. When she returned to the set, she needed a wheelchair to get to set. She had to be physically propped up for scenes. She napped during the day to get through it, but she was determined to finish the final season of Dead to Me, which premieres Nov. 17 on Netflix, and bring closure to fans of the show as well as to the cast.
