Longtime friends Alana Stewart (left) and Farrah Fawcett attend the 2004 after-party for the premiere of The Manchurian Candidate at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills.

UPDATE: “Charlie’s Angels’” Farrah Fawcett dies after battle with cancer

Farrah Fawcett through the years | Fawcett, 1947-2009

• TV Talk blogger Kevin D. Thompson’s interview with the actress five years ago: Remembering Farrah: She was funny, gorgeous

You’ve seen them in the tabloids, on Entertainment Tonight and in Farrah’s Story, the documentary chronicling Farrah’s battle with cancer that drew almost 9 million viewers to NBC last month.

But behind the scenes, there’s a real-life friendship between Farrah Fawcett and Alana Stewart, two former models with Texas roots who share a 30-year bond.

They’re more than celebrity darlings. They’re friends.

Which is why Alana happened to be the one Farrah turned to for a favor in May 2007, as the former Charlie’s Angel, battling anal cancer, faced another round of doctors’ meetings.

“She handed me a camera to document the meetings,” said Alana, former wife of local residents Rod Stewart and George Hamilton. “It was a new experience and Farrah wanted to be able to remember what the doctors said.

“I just started filming; there was no plan to do a documentary.”

But the camera kept running, and after a year, Farrah began to think her story, if shared, might inspire others.

Alana, who filmed and eventually produced the project, never anticipated a two-year undertaking.

“When I watch it now, I can’t believe I shot all that,” she said. “I was walking through this experience to be with my friend. The filming was secondary, an aside. It was about showing up and being there for Farrah.”

Ex-husband Hamilton, who remains good friends with Alana, said that while Farrah’s Story was a “huge stress” on Alana, “nobody ever had a better patient advocate.

“You can’t get through hospitals and our medical system without an advocate,” he said. “I’ve seen Alana be there every day for Farrah for two or three years.”

Ask about the origins of her friendship with Farrah, and Alana will tell you she was raised in tiny Nacogdoches, and Farrah in Corpus Christi. And if you know anything about Texas, you know that says it all.

“We had that Texas connection,” Alana said. “Texas people have a direct honesty and down-home values. It certainly contributed to our friendship.”

The two met during a modeling assignment in Los Angeles, but didn’t connect officially until a dinner party some years later.

“The friendship slowly built over years,” Alana said. “When you’re younger, you’re busy with kids and your life goes in a million different directions.

“But life changes when you get into your 40s and 50s; it’s more settled and serious — and your friendships become more serious. Girlfriends support you in your 20s and 30s, sure, but as you get older they become even more important.

“You can’t go to the man in your life for certain things, if there’s a man in your life. Women friends are always there.”

Hamilton said the two women are “just so much alike. … They’re close in age, and certainly Alana related to Farrah as someone who’d succeeded at what she most wanted in life. “They’re so real with each other,” he said. “They had the same reference points, which made it easy for one to finish the other’s sentence. And, of course, both of them are very strong women.” And when the hard times came, they leaned on one another, as friends do. “Farrah felt that I could protect her,” Alana said. “She knew I would kick ass for her, that I had her back.” Despite the gravity of Farrah’s illness, the two years of filming yielded precious memories for the women. Though now in their 60s, the two friends can get downright girlish when they’re together. “You should see them,” Hamilton laughed. “Put them together and they’re exactly like two kids having cheeseburgers and Cokes at a small-town drive-in.” Said Alana: “That’s a great description.”