The Princess is dead

Carrie Fisher, aka Princess Leia died after suffering a heart attack earlier in the week.  I find myself strangely affected by the news of her passing.  As with many millions of other Americans and fans around the world, I remember seeing Star Wars in 1977 and being impressed by the plucky Princess Leia and her "can do" attitude toward her duty as leader of the rebel alliance opposing the evil Empire.   As opposed to a typical Disney princess who waited passively for her Prince Charming to deliver her from whatever villain threatened, Leia was likely to pick up a blast rifle and start shooting before her befuddled would be rescuers had figured out the situation.  She became the prototype of this new kind of action heroine.  Ironically the Star Wars franchise is now owned by Disney.  Fisher herself also personified this rough and ready ethos, although her private life was a shambles and she struggled with drug and alcohol problems.  She will appear in one more movie as the Princess in the continuing saga.  We'll miss her and also the alter ego, who showed there is more than one way to express femininity in the 21st century.