Natasha Richardson's family laid the actress to rest today in a private ceremony in New York's Hudson Valley area. The service took place at 2 p.m. at St. Peter's Episcopal Church in Millbrook, N.Y., near Richardson's home with husband Liam Neeson and their two sons.
The service was only for family and close friends.
Neeson and five other pallbearers carried Richardson's casket into the church; she was buried in a nearby cemetery, near the grave of her maternal grandmohter, actress Rachel Kempson.
The coffin, made of dark brown wood, arrived in a silver hearse, the New York Post reported. A lone guitarist accompanied them, accompanied by the sound of church bells.
Both Neeson and Richardson's mother, Vanessa Redgrave, paused for photographs before entering the church.
The family -- including Neeson, his sons, Richardson's mother Vanessa Redgrave and sister Joley Richardson -- attended a wake on Saturday at the American Irish Historical Society in Manhattan. Other attendees included Ralph Fiennes, Sara Jessica Parker, Uma Thurman, Mike Nichols, Diane Sawyer, Rupert Everett, Ethan Hawke, Matthew Modine, Howard Stern and Laura Linney. (See slideshow of attendees.)
Both Hollywood and New York were stunned by Richardson's death. Broadway theaters dimmed their marquees for one minute at 8 p.m. Thursday night in honor of the actress, who died Wednesday at the age of 45 after falling on a ski slope. The New York City medical examiner's office officially placed the cause of death on an accidental "epidural hematoma due to blunt impact to the head."
The family released their official statement confirming Richardson’s death at 4:52 p.m. ET. Wednesday: “Liam Neeson, his sons, and the entire family are shocked and devastated by the tragic death of their beloved Natasha. They are profoundly grateful for the support, love and prayers of everyone, and ask for privacy during this very difficult time.”
Richardson’s colleagues in the film world and on Broadway were stunned and saddened by her death.
As early as Tuesday night -- while the she was still on life support -- several celebrities paid tribute outside an event honoring designer Valentino Garavani.
“She’s a beautiful woman and a great actress,” Blythe Danner told Entertainment Tonight on the red carpet. “She wrote me such a lovely letter when we were under such duress with Bruce (her husband, Bruce Paltrow, who died in 2002 of throat cancer).”
Referring to Richardson and husband Neeson, she said: “I think they’re both extraordinary talents and wonderful parents, and such good people.” Regis Philbin said he once lived across the street from Richardson, adding, “It’s a tragedy.”
Richardson's friend, Meryl Streep, said, "Tash was the warm sun in the center of a large constellation of family, friends, all of those lucky enough to know her -- she is irreplaceable in our lives; she gave us so much, so generously -- her legacy is the love that connects us all."
Longtime friend E! gossip columnist Ted Casablanca, who attended her first wedding to producer Robert Fox, wrote on his blog, “Knowing how to keep a marriage, a life and a career going through levity was Tash's hallmark.
