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| People.com |
When it comes to gay icons, there is first and foremost Judy, then Barbra, and then there is Bette. Bette Midler was born today, December 1, in 1945. She is a singer, songwriter, actress, comedian, and film producer.
Born in Honolulu, Hawaii, Midler began her professional career in several Off-Off-Broadway plays, prior to her engagements in Fiddler on the Roof and Salvation on Broadway in the late 1960s. She came to prominence in 1970 when she began singing in the Continental Baths, a local gay bathhousewhere she managed to build up a core following.
Since 1970, Midler has released 14 studio albums as a solo artist. Throughout her career, many of her songs became hits on the record charts, including her renditions of "The Rose," "Wind Beneath My Wings," "Do You Want to Dance," "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy," and "From a Distance."
Midler made her motion picture debut in 1979 with The Rose, which earned her a Golden Globe for Best Actress and an Oscar nomination for Best Actress (for which she was robbed).
She has since starred in a number of hit films, which include: Down and Out in Beverly Hills, Outrageous Fortune, Beaches, The First Wives Club, Hocus Pocus, and The Stepford Wives. She also starred in For the Boys and Gypsy, and won two additional Golden Globe Awards for these films.
In a career spanning almost half a century, Midler has won three Grammy Awards, four Golden Globes, three Emmy Awards, and two Tony Awards. She has sold more than 30 million records worldwide, and has received four Gold, three Platinum, and three Multiplatinum albums by RIAA.
Midler is currently appearing on Broadway in a revival of Hello, Dolly! Midler received the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical.
In a career spanning almost half a century, Midler has won three Grammy Awards, four Golden Globes, three Emmy Awards, and two Tony Awards. She has sold more than 30 million records worldwide, and has received four Gold, three Platinum, and three Multiplatinum albums by RIAA.
Midler is currently appearing on Broadway in a revival of Hello, Dolly! Midler received the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical.
1 comment:
I'd not heard of her until 'Divine Madness' (1980) - followed by 'The Rose' even though that was actually shot the year before. Since then I've loved her big time.
Although it's not generally rated as her best film I've always had a special regard for 'Beaches' as I saw that in Dublin on my one and only visit to Ireland in 1990, and in the company of a close German friend, who was already suffering under the 'Big A' and was to finally succumb just six months later. I own a precious video of the film but I always also tear up whenever I just hear Bette singing 'Wind beneath my Wings'.
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