Broadway legend Elaine Stritch is 85 years old today … I’ll drink to that!!! [Updated]

The great Elaine Stritch is an inspiration for people of any age.

This showbiz dynamo with the brassy rough voice has been a big stage star for many decades with her Ladies Who Lunch number from the 1970 Stephen Sondheim musical Company being her signature song. She made her Broadway debut in the 40s and her shows over the years included Pal Joey, Sail Away, Bus Stop, Angels in the Wings, Showboat and A Delicate Balance.

She did a lot of television over the years but is probably best known for her recent Emmy-winning role as Alec Baldwin’s mother in 30 rock. Her dazzling 2001 one-woman show Elaine Stritch at Liberty was a triumph on Broadway, London and nationally and won the Tony Award. The show was also filmed as an HBO documentary that won an Emmy.

I can’t wait to find out what else Miss Stritch has in store for us after all these years.

Update: I’ve corrected Stritch’s age to 85. Damned Wikipedia had her at 84! Speaking of Wikipedia, the photo on Stritch’s page is one I took of her at the Creative Arts Emmys this year.

The LA Times reports that Miss Stritch is celebrating her big day performing at the Café Carlyle. It’s the final performance of her cabaret show, At Home at the Carlyle: Elaine Stritch Singin’ Sondheim… One Song at a Time. Among those who are expected to be in attendance: Stephen Sondheim, Harold Prince, Patti LuPone, Nathan Lane, Michael Feinstein, James Gandolfini and Christine Ebersole.