Rosie O’Donnell Takes on Brian Williams at the Athena Film Festival

The irrepressible Rosie O’Donnell could not help herself. Coaxed to do stand up on the not funny subject of her heart attack by HBO’s Sheila Nevins, the television star created a routine that is more than the heartfelt in its title, “Rosie O’Donnell: A Heartfelt Standup,” it’s a PSA for women, a wake-up call to the astonishing fact that the leading killer of women is not breast or ovarian cancer, but heart disease. After a special screening at the Athena Film Festival, a panel of doctors weighed in on heart health for women offering tips for prevention. O’Donnell created a mantra for detection, HEPPP: Hot, exhausted, pain, pale, puke, which she made into an infectious ditty. When someone in the audience told her own heart story, O’Donnell strained to find a place for H, an added symptom of heartburn.

 Rosie being Rosie, she could not help herself. Topical, she took swipes as Brian Williams. “Oh yeah, and I wrote and directed A League of their Own. Oops, I forgot, I only acted in that movie,” she quipped. Though she says she is leaving The View because of her health, Rosie seems in top form, casting a roving eye on the young women filmmakers in the crowd. “Ooh, did you feel something? I felt it. You may be my next wife.”

Regina Weinreich

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