when we finally closed the deal with sony pictures in 2011, debra chase her producing partner, devon franklin and pastor jakes decided this film "sparkle" was going to happen. and six weeks of filming ssparankkle were some of the happiest times of her life. the presence of god was in the midst of this project and in her mind it was ordained by god and the history of her fifil making, this movie inspired her to be devoted and dedicated, what she herself wanted to be as a mother, be obi kristina. and nicholas her work ethics were impeccable, she was on top of her game and on this day, i'm proud to say that she was a gift of light to many on that he set. she put the spark in spamany le and krissy, that was for you. [applaus [applause]. you were that spark. she wanted much for you. you know how she used to tell you, say your prayers. did you read that scripture? i don't care what was going on with her, i donure care what it was, she stayed rounded in the word, mom you'd be proud. protoe]! protop. to her band members, past and present, thank you for never abandoning her. [applause] she ha

in "the bodyguard" and "preacher's" wife, "cinderella," i know her great friend and partner, debra martin chase"sparkle," i know she is devastated. she worked with her for many years. she was a huge talent and just so important to the world. i mean, people all over the world knew her and loved her voice and her music will live on. but it reminds me of the death of michael jackson, three days before the b.e.t awards. so my heart goes out to her family and daughter, everyone who knew and loved her and a lot of those people have been together this weekend. >> one final question, i know time is short, i was struck by listening to an interview by jennifer hudson which she said that when she was down and out and worried about losing her home, that whitney houston reached out the her and invited to help promote her and lift her up again. that is a side that we do not see about the super stars. >> right, she had a big heart. she was close to people. as i said, she didn't forget about her roots. wherever i saw her, she gave me a big hug, she showed up when we asked her to and you know, she didn't fit th

it was set up by my friend who debra martin-chase who was whitney houston's long-time producing partnerhe other interviews whitney was paired with other people because they wanted to respect her privacy and deflect questions about her personal life. >> what was her behavior like during your interview? >> matt, you could not tell me that this was a woman who was going to be dead in some 13 weeks. she looked healthy. she sounded fantastic. she came into the room, my parents were there, she chatted with them, complimented me on my shoes that i had on. she seemed very happy and in a really good place. she was coming to work every day on the set of "sparkle." everyone on the set looked at her as a mentor. she gave advice to jordin sparks and some of the other actors on set. she was in tip-top form. mtd, i tell you, when i looked in her eyes, i said, this is the time that whitney houston is going to come back. this is it. because we've all seen in many other stories about this is whitney's comeback and she never looked as put together as she did when i interviewed her back in november. to thi