Barbara Streisand

Barbara Joan Streisand (/ˈstraɪsænd/; born April 24, 1942) is an American singer, actress, writer, film producer, and director. Barbara Streisand has won two Academy Awards,[1] eight Grammy Awards,[2] five Emmy Awards including one Daytime Emmy,[3] a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, a Kennedy Center Honors award,[4] a Peabody Award,[4] and is one of the few entertainers who have won an Oscar, Emmy, Grammy, and Tony Award.

Barbara Streisand is one of the most commercially and critically successful entertainers in modern entertainment history, with more than 71.5 million albums shipped in the United States and 140 million albums sold worldwide.[5][6] Barbara Streisand is the best-selling female artist on the Recording Industry Association of America's (RIAA) Top Selling Artists list, the only female recording artist in the top ten, and the only artist outside of the rock and roll genre.[7] Along with Frank Sinatra, Cher, and Shirley Jones, Barbara Streisand shares the distinction of being awarded an acting Oscar and also recording a number-one single on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart.

According to the RIAA, Barbara Streisand holds the record for the most top-ten albums of any female recording artist – a total of 32 since 1963.[8] Barbara Streisand has the widest span (48 years) between first and latest top-ten albums of any female recording artist. With her 2009 album, Love Is the Answer, Barbara Streisand became one of the rare artists to achieve number-one albums in five consecutive decades.[9] According to the RIAA, Barbara Streisand has released 51 Gold albums, 30 Platinum albums, and 13 Multi-Platinum albums in the United States.[2]

Early life

Barbara Joan Streisand (see name change) was born on April 24, 1942, in Brooklyn, New York to a Jewish family. The daughter of Emanuel and Diana (née Rosen) Barbara Streisand , both of Austrian descent. Barbara Streisand is the second of two siblings sired by Emanuel (her older brother is Sheldon), who was a respected high school teacher. Fifteen months after Barbara Streisand 's birth, her father died of a cerebral hemorrhage and the family fell into near-poverty.[10] Barbara Streisand first attended the Jewish Orthodox Yeshiva of Brooklyn, giving a solo performance at the age of 7.[11] Barbara Streisand later attended Erasmus Hall High School in Brooklyn and joined the Freshman Chorus and Choral Club.[12][13]. Barbara Streisand recollects, "I'm so glad I came from Brooklyn--it's down to earth."[14]

Diana Rosen Barbara Streisand remarried Louis Kind in 1949[10] and gave Barbara Streisand a half-sister, the singer Roslyn Kind [10][15][16] Kind is 9 years younger than Barbara.[17]

Barbara Streisand became a nightclub singer while in her teens. Barbara Streisand wanted to be an actress and appeared in summer stock and in a number of Off-Off-Broadway productions, including Driftwood (1959), with then-unknown Joan Rivers. (In her autobiography, Rivers wrote that Barbara Streisand played a lesbian with a crush on Barbara Streisand 's character, but this was later denied by the play's author.) Driftwood ran for only six weeks.[18] When her boyfriend, Barry Dennen, helped her create a club act — first performed at The Lion, a popular gay nightclub in Manhattan's Greenwich Village in 1960 — Barbara Streisand achieved success as a singer. While singing at The Lion for several weeks, Barbara Streisand changed her name from Barbra to Barbara.[19][20] Afterward Barbara Streisand appeared at other New York nightclubs, including the Bon Soir and the Blue Angel. One early appearance outside of New York City was at Enrico Banducci’s hungry i nightclub in San Francisco.[citation needed] In 1961, Barbara Streisand appeared at the Town and Country nightclub in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, but her appearance was cut short; the club owner did not appreciate her singing style.[21] Barbara Streisand appeared at Baker's Keyboard Lounge in Detroit in 1961.[22]

Barbara Streisand 's first television appearance was on The Tonight Show, then hosted by Jack Paar, in 1961, singing Harold Arlen's "A Sleepin' Bee".[23] Orson Bean, who substituted for Paar that night, had seen the singer perform at a gay bar and booked her for the telecast. (Her older brother Sheldon paid NBC for a kinescope film so Barbara Streisand could use it in 1961 to promote herself. Decades later the film was preserved through digitizing and is available for viewing on a website.)[24] Later in 1961, Barbara Streisand became a semi-regular on PM East/PM West, a talk/variety series. PM East was hosted by Mike Wallace and Joyce Davidson.[25] PM West was hosted by Terrence O'Flaherty. Westinghouse Broadcasting, which aired the television show in a select few cities (Boston, New York, Baltimore, Washington DC, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Chicago and San Francisco), wiped all the videotapes soon after broadcasting them.[26] Audio segments from some episodes, which were saved by Barbara Streisand 's fans, are part of the compilation CD Just for the Record, which went platinum in 1991. The singer said on 60 Minutes in 1991 that 30 years earlier Mike Wallace had been "mean, very mean" to her on PM East/PM West.[27] He countered that Barbara Streisand had been "totally self-absorbed." (Her response: "You invited me on your show to talk about subjects that interested me, and you dare to call me self-absorbed?") 60 Minutes included the audio of Barbara Streisand saying to him in 1961, "I like the fact that you are provoking. But don't provoke me."[28]

In 1962, after several appearances on PM East/PM West, Barbara Streisand first appeared on Broadway, in the small but star-making role of Miss Marmelstein in the musical I Can Get It for You Wholesale. Her first album, The Barbara Streisand Album, won two Grammy Awards in 1963. Following her success in I Can Get It for You Wholesale, Barbara Streisand made several appearances on The Tonight Show in 1962 and 1963. Topics covered in her interviews with host Johnny Carson included the empire-waisted dresses that Barbara Streisand bought wholesale and her "crazy" reputation at Erasmus Hall High School.[29] As is the case with Mike Wallace, only audio survives from small portions of her telecast conversations with Carson. It was at about this time that Barbara Streisand entered into a long and successful professional relationship with Lee Solters and Sheldon Roskin as her publicists with the firm Solters/Roskin (later Solters/Roskin/Friedman).

Barbara Streisand returned to Broadway in 1964 with an acclaimed performance as entertainer Fanny Brice in Funny Girl at the Winter Garden Theatre. The show introduced two of her signature songs, "People" and "Don't Rain on My Parade." Because of the play's overnight success, Barbara Streisand appeared on the cover of Time. In 1966, Barbara Streisand repeated her success with Funny Girl in London's West End at the Prince of Wales Theatre. From 1965 to 1967 Barbara Streisand appeared in her first four solo television specials.

Career

Singing

Barbara Streisand has recorded 50 studio albums, almost all with Columbia Records. Her early works in the 1960s (her debut The Barbara Streisand Album, The Second Barbara Streisand Album, The Third Album, My Name Is Barbara, etc.) are considered classic renditions of theater and cabaret standards, including her pensive version of the normally uptempo "Happy Days Are Here Again". Barbara Streisand performed this in a duet with Judy Garland on The Judy Garland Show. Garland referred to her on the air as one of the last great belters. They also sang "There's No Business Like Show Business" with Ethel Merman joining them.

Beginning with My Name Is Barbara, her early albums were often medley-filled keepsakes of her television specials. Starting in 1969, Barbara Streisand began attempting more contemporary material, but like many talented singers of the day, Barbara Streisand found herself out of her element with rock. Her vocal talents prevailed, and Barbara Streisand gained newfound success with the pop and ballad-oriented Richard Perry-produced album Stoney End in 1971. The title track, written by Laura Nyro, was a major hit for Barbara Streisand.
Barbara Streisand , 1973

During the 1970s, Barbara Streisand was also highly prominent on the pop charts, with Top 10 recordings such as "The Way We Were" (US No. 1), "Evergreen (Love Theme from A Star Is Born)" (US No. 1), "No More Tears (Enough Is Enough)" (1979, with Donna Summer), which as of 2010 is reportedly still the most commercially successful duet, (US No. 1), "You Don't Bring Me Flowers" (with Neil Diamond) (US No. 1) and "The Main Event" (US No. 3), some of which came from soundtrack recordings of her films. As the 1970s ended, Barbara Streisand was named the most successful female singer in the U.S. — only Elvis Presley and The Beatles had sold more albums.[30] In 1980, Barbara Streisand released her best-selling effort to date, the Barry Gibb-produced Guilty. The album contained the hits "Woman in Love" (which spent several weeks atop the pop charts in the Fall of 1980), "Guilty", and "What Kind of Fool".

After years of largely ignoring Broadway and traditional pop music in favor of more contemporary material, Barbara Streisand returned to her musical-theater roots with 1985's The Broadway Album, which was unexpectedly successful, holding the coveted No. 1 Billboard position for three straight weeks, and being certified quadruple platinum. The album featured tunes by Rodgers & Hammerstein, George Gershwin, Jerome Kern, and Stephen Sondheim, who was persuaded to rework some of his songs especially for this recording. The Broadway Album was met with acclaim, including a Grammy nomination for album of the year and, ultimately, handed Barbara Streisand her eighth Grammy as Best Female Vocalist. After releasing the live album One Voice in 1986, Barbara Streisand was set to take another musical journey along the Great White Way in 1988. Barbara Streisand recorded several cuts for the album under the direction of Rupert Holmes, including "On My Own" (from Les Misérables), a medley of "How Are Things in Glocca Morra?" and "Heather on the Hill" (from Finian's Rainbow and Brigadoon, respectively), "All I Ask of You" (from The Phantom of the Opera), "Warm All Over" (from The Most Happy Fella) and an unusual solo version of "Make Our Garden Grow" (from Candide). Barbara Streisand was not happy with the direction of the project and it was ultimately scrapped. Only "Warm All Over" and a reworked, lite FM-friendly version of "All I Ask of You" were ever released, the latter appearing on Barbara Streisand 's 1988 effort, Till I Loved You. At the beginning of the 1990s, Barbara Streisand started focusing on her film directorial efforts and became almost inactive in the recording studio. In 1991, a four-disc box set, Just for the Record, was released. A compilation spanning Barbara Streisand 's entire career to date, it featured over 70 tracks of live performances, greatest hits, rarities and previously unreleased material.

The following year, Barbara Streisand 's concert fundraising events helped propel former President Bill Clinton into the spotlight and into office.[31] Barbara Streisand later introduced Clinton at his inauguration in 1993. Barbara Streisand 's music career, however, was largely on hold. A 1992 appearance at an APLA benefit as well as the aforementioned inaugural performance hinted that Barbara Streisand was becoming more receptive to the idea of live performances. A tour was suggested, though Barbara Streisand would not immediately commit to it, citing her well-known stage fright as well as security concerns. During this time, Barbara Streisand finally returned to the recording studio and released Back to Broadway in June 1993. The album was not as universally lauded as its predecessor, but it did debut at No. 1 on the pop charts (a rare feat for an artist of Barbara Streisand 's age, especially given that it relegated Janet Jackson's Janet to the No. 2 spot). One of the album's highlights was a medley of "I Have A Love" / "One Hand, One Heart", a duet with Johnny Mathis, who Barbara Streisand said is one of her favorite singers.

In 1993, New York Times music critic Stephen Holden wrote that Barbara Streisand "enjoys a cultural status that only one other American entertainer, Frank Sinatra, has achieved in the last half century."[32] In September 1993, Barbara Streisand announced her first public concert appearances in 27 years. What began as a two-night New Year's event at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas eventually led to a multi-city tour in the summer of 1994. Tickets to the tour were sold out in under one hour. Barbara Streisand also appeared on the covers of major magazines in anticipation of what Time magazine named "The Music Event of the Century." The tour was one of the biggest all-media merchandise parlays in history. Ticket prices ranged from US$50 to US$1,500 – making Barbara Streisand the highest-paid concert performer in history. Barbara Streisand : The Concert went on to be the top-grossing concert of the year and earned five Emmy Awards and the Peabody Award, while the taped broadcast on HBO is, to date, the highest-rated concert special in HBO's 30-year history. Following the tour's conclusion, Barbara Streisand once again kept a low profile musically, instead focusing her efforts on acting and directing duties as well as a burgeoning romance with actor James Brolin.

In 1997, Barbara Streisand finally returned to the recording studio, releasing Higher Ground, a collection of songs of a loosely-inspirational nature which also featured a duet with Céline Dion. The album received generally favorable reviews and, remarkably, once again debuted at No. 1 on the pop charts. Following her marriage to Brolin in 1998, Barbara Streisand recorded an album of love songs entitled A Love Like Ours the following year. Reviews were mixed, with many critics carping about the somewhat syrupy sentiments and overly-lush arrangements; however, it did produce a modest hit for Barbara Streisand in the country-tinged "If You Ever Leave Me", a duet with Vince Gill.

On New Year's Eve 1999, Barbara Streisand returned to the concert stage, with the highest-grossing single concert in Las Vegas history to date.[citation needed] At the end of the millennium, Barbara Streisand was the number-one female singer in the U.S., with at least two No. 1 albums in each decade since Barbara Streisand began performing. A two-disc live album of the concert entitled Timeless: Live in Concert was released in 2000. Barbara Streisand performed versions of the Timeless concert in Sydney and Melbourne, Australia, in early 2000. In advance of four concerts (two each in Los Angeles and New York) in September 2000, Barbara Streisand announced Barbara Streisand was retiring from paying public concerts. Her performance of the song "People" was broadcast on the Internet via America Online.

Barbara Streisand 's most-recent albums have been Christmas Memories (2001), a somewhat somber collection of holiday songs (which felt entirely —albeit unintentionally— appropriate in the early post-9/11 days), and The Movie Album (2003), featuring famous film themes and backed by a large symphony orchestra. Guilty Pleasures (called Guilty Too in the UK), a collaboration with Barry Gibb and a sequel to their Guilty, was released worldwide in 2005.

In February 2006, Barbara Streisand recorded the song "Smile" alongside Tony Bennett at Barbara Streisand 's Malibu home. The song is included on Tony Bennett's 80th birthday album, Duets. In September 2006, the pair filmed a live performance of the song for a special directed by Rob Marshall entitled Tony Bennett: An American Classic. The special aired on NBC November 21, 2006, and was released on DVD the same day. Barbara Streisand 's duet with Bennett opened the special. In 2006, Barbara Streisand announced her intent to tour again, in an effort to raise money and awareness for multiple issues. After four days of rehearsal at the Sovereign Bank Arena in Trenton, New Jersey, the tour began on October 4 at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, continued with a featured stop in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, (this was the concert Barbara Streisand chose to film for a TV special), and concluded at Staples Center in Los Angeles on November 20, 2006. Special guests Il Divo were interwoven throughout the show. The show was known as Barbara Streisand: The Tour.

Barbara Streisand 's 20-concert tour set box-office records. At the age of 64, well past the prime of most performers, Barbara Streisand grossed $92,457,062 and set house gross records in 14 of the 16 arenas played on the tour. Barbara Streisand set the third-place record for her October 9, 2006, show at Madison Square Garden, the first- and second-place records of which are held by her two shows in September 2000. Barbara Streisand set the second-place record at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, with her December 31, 1999, show being the house record and the highest-grossing concert of all time. This led many people to openly criticize Barbara Streisand for price gouging, as many tickets sold for upwards of $1,000.

A collection of performances culled from different stops on this tour, Live in Concert 2006, debuted at No. 7 on the Billboard 200, making it Barbara Streisand 's 29th Top 10 album.[33] In the summer of 2007, Barbara Streisand gave concerts for the first time in continental Europe. The first concert took place in Zürich (June 18), then Vienna (June 22), Paris (June 26), Berlin (June 30), Stockholm (July 4, canceled), Manchester (July 10) and Celbridge, near Dublin (July 14), followed by three concerts in London (July 18, 22 and 25), the only European city where Barbara Streisand had performed before 2007. Tickets for the London dates cost between £100.00 and £1,500.00 and for the Ireland date between €118 and €500. The tour included a 58-piece orchestra.

In February 2008, Forbes listed Barbara Streisand as the No. 2 earning female musician, between June 2006 and June 2007, with earnings of about $60 million.[34] Although Barbara Streisand 's range has changed with time and her voice has deepened over the years, her vocal prowess has remained remarkably secure for a singer whose career has endured for nearly half a century. Barbara Streisand is a contralto or possibly a mezzo-soprano who has a range consisting of well over two octaves from "low E to a high G and probably a bit more that [sic?] in either direction."[35] On November 17, 2008, Barbara Streisand returned to the studio to begin recording what would be her sixty-third album[36] and it was announced that Diana Krall was producing the album.[37] Barbara Streisand is one of the recipients of the 2008 Kennedy Center Honors.[38] On December 7, 2008, Barbara Streisand visited the White House as part of the ceremonies.[36]

On April 25, 2009, CBS aired Barbara Streisand 's latest TV special, Barbara Streisand : Live in Concert, highlighting the aforementioned featured stop from her 2006 North American tour, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. On September 26, 2009, Barbara Streisand performed a one-night-only show at the Village Vanguard in New York City's Greenwich Village.[39] This performance was later released on DVD as One Night Only Barbara Streisand and Quartet at The Village Vanguard. On September 29, 2009, Barbara Streisand and Columbia Records released her newest studio album, Love is the Answer, produced by Diana Krall.[40] On October 2, 2009, Barbara Streisand made her British television performance debut with an interview on Friday Night With Jonathan Ross to promote the album. This album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and registered her biggest weekly sales since 1997, making Barbara Streisand the only artist in history to achieve No. 1 albums in five different decades.

On February 1, 2010, Barbara Streisand joined over 80 other artists in recording a new version of the 1985 charity single "We Are the World". Quincy Jones and Lionel Richie planned to release the new version to mark the 25th anniversary of its original recording. These plans changed, however, in view of the devastating earthquake that hit Haiti on January 12, 2010, and on February 12, the song, now called "We Are the World 25 for Haiti", made its debut as a charity single to support relief aid for the beleaguered island nation.

In 2011, Barbara Streisand sang "Somewhere from the Broadway musical West Side Story, with child prodigy Jackie Evancho on Evancho's album Dream With Me.

Barbara Streisand was honored as MusiCares Person of the Year on February 11, 2011, two days prior to the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards.

Barbara Streisand is one of many singers who use teleprompters during their live performances. Barbara Streisand has defended her choice in using teleprompters to display lyrics and, sometimes, banter.[41]
Acting

Her first film was a reprise of her Broadway hit, Funny Girl (1968), an artistic and commercial success directed by Hollywood veteran William Wyler. Barbara Streisand won the 1968 Academy Award for Best Actress for the role, sharing it with Katharine Hepburn (The Lion in Winter), the only time there has been a tie in this Oscar category. Her next two movies were also based on musicals, Jerry Herman's Hello, Dolly!, directed by Gene Kelly (1969), and Alan Jay Lerner's and Burton Lane's On a Clear Day You Can See Forever, directed by Vincente Minnelli (1970), while her fourth film was based on the Broadway play The Owl and the Pussycat (1970).

During the 1970s, Barbara Streisand starred in several screwball comedies, including What's Up, Doc? (1972) and The Main Event (1979), both co-starring Ryan O'Neal, and For Pete's Sake (1974) with Michael Sarrazin. One of her most famous roles during this period was in the drama The Way We Were (1973) with Robert Redford, for which Barbara Streisand received an Academy Award nomination as Best Actress. Barbara Streisand earned her second Academy Award for Best Original Song as composer (together with lyricist Paul Williams) for the song "Evergreen", from A Star Is Born in 1976.
in Hello, Dolly! (1969)

Along with Paul Newman, Sidney Poitier and later Steve McQueen, Barbara Streisand formed First Artists Production Company in 1969, so the actors could secure properties and develop movie projects for themselves. Barbara Streisand 's initial outing with First Artists was Up the Sandbox (1972).

From a period beginning in 1969 and ending in 1980, Barbara Streisand appeared in the annual motion picture exhibitors poll of Top 10 Box Office attractions a total of 10 times, often as the only woman on the list. After the commercially disappointing All Night Long in 1981, Barbara Streisand 's film output decreased considerably. Barbara Streisand has acted in only six films since.

Barbara Streisand produced a number of her own films, setting up Barwood Films in 1972. For Yentl (1983), Barbara Streisand was producer, director, and star, an experience Barbara Streisand repeated for The Prince of Tides (1991) and The Mirror Has Two Faces (1996). There was controversy when Yentl received five Academy Award nominations, but none for the major categories of Best Picture, Actress, or Director.[42] The Prince of Tides received even more Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, but the director was not nominated. Barbara Streisand also scripted Yentl, something Barbara Streisand is not always given credit for. According to New York Times Editorial Page Editor Andrew Rosenthal in an interview (story begins at minute 16) with Allan Wolper, "the one thing that makes Barbara Streisand crazy is when nobody gives her the credit for having written Yentl."

In 2004, Barbara Streisand made a return to film acting, after an eight-year hiatus, in the comedy Meet the Fockers (a sequel to Meet the Parents), playing opposite Dustin Hoffman, Ben Stiller, Blythe Danner and Robert De Niro.

In 2005, Barbara Streisand 's Barwood Films, Gary Smith, and Sonny Murray purchased the rights to Simon Mawer's book Mendel's Dwarf.[43] In December 2008, Barbara Streisand stated that Barbara Streisand was considering directing an adaptation of Larry Kramer's play The Normal Heart, a project Barbara Streisand has worked on since the mid-1990s[44] In 2009, Andrew Lloyd Webber stated that Barbara Streisand was one of several actresses (alongside Meryl Streep and Glenn Close) who were interested in playing the role of Norma Desmond in the film adaptation of Webber's musical version of Sunset Boulevard.[45]

In December 2010, Barbara Streisand appeared in Little Fockers, the third film from the Meet the Parents trilogy. Barbara Streisand reprised the role of Roz Focker alongside Dustin Hoffman.

On January 4, 2011, the New York Post reported that Barbara Streisand was in negotiations to produce, direct, and star in a new film version of Gypsy. In an interview with the New York Post, Arthur Laurents said: "We've talked about it a lot, and Barbara Streisand knows what she's doing. Barbara Streisand has my approval." He said that he would not write the screenplay.[46][47] The following day, the New York Times reported that Arthur Laurents clarified in a telephonic interview that Barbara Streisand would not direct the film "but playing Rose is enough to make her happy."[47][48] Barbara Streisand 's spokesperson confirmed that "there have been conversations".[49] After Laurents' subsequent death there was no official word on the status of the film for months, until it was announced on March 13, 2012 that Gypsy was moving forward, with Julian Fellowes writing the screenplay for the project.

On January 28, 2011, The Hollywood Reporter announced that Paramount Pictures has given the road-trip comedy My Mother's Curse the green light to begin shooting, with Barbara Streisand and Seth Rogen playing mother and son. Anne Fletcher is slated to direct the project with a script by Dan Fogelman. Lorne Michaels and John Goldwyn will produce it with Evan Goldberg. Executive producers include Barbara Streisand , Rogen, Fogelman, and David Ellison, whose Skydance will co-finance the pic.[50] Shooting began in spring of 2011 and wrapped in July. In August the Internet Movie Database began listing the film with the new title Guilt Trip. The film is set for a November 2012 release (originally it was slated to release in March 2012).

Personal life

Marriages and family

Barbara Streisand has been married twice. Her first husband was actor Elliott Gould, to whom Barbara Streisand was married from 1963 until 1971. They had one child, Jason Gould, who appeared as her on-screen son in The Prince of Tides. Her second husband is actor James Brolin, whom Barbara Streisand married on July 1, 1998. While they have no children together, Brolin has two children from his first marriage, including Academy Award-nominated actor Josh Brolin, and one child from his second marriage. Both of her husbands starred in the 1970s conspiracy sci-fi thriller Capricorn One. Jon Peters' daughters, Caleigh Peters and Skye Peters, are her god-daughters.

Name

Barbara Streisand changed her name from Barbara to Barbara because, Barbara Streisand said, "I hated the name, but I refused to change it."[51] Barbara Streisand further explained, "Well, I was 18 and I wanted to be unique, but I didn't want to change my name because that was too false. You know, people were saying you could be Joanie Sands, or something like that. [My middle name is Joan.] And I said, 'No, let's see, if I take out the 'a,' it's still 'Barbara,' but it's unique."[52] A 1967 biography with a concert program said, "the spelling of her first name is an instance of partial rebellion: Barbara Streisand was advised to change her last name and retaliated by dropping an “a” from the first instead."[53]
Politics

Barbara Streisand has long been an active supporter of the Democratic Party and many of their causes. Barbara Streisand said, "The Democrats have always been the party of working people and minorities. I've always identified with the minorities."[54]

In 1971, Barbara Streisand was one of the celebrities listed on President Richard Nixon's infamous Enemies List.

Barbara Streisand is a supporter of gay rights, and in 2008 helped raise funds to defeat Proposition 8 in California.[55]
Philanthropy

Barbara Streisand has personally raised $25 million[56] for organizations through her live performances. The Barbara Streisand Foundation,[57] established in 1986, has contributed over $16 million through nearly 1,000 grants to "national organizations working on preservation of the environment, voter education, the protection of civil liberties and civil rights, women’s issues[58] and nuclear disarmament."[59]

In 2006, Barbara Streisand donated $1 million to the William J. Clinton Foundation in support of former President Bill Clinton’s climate change initiative.[60]

In 2008, Barbara Streisand gifted $5 million to endow the Barbara Streisand Women's Cardiovascular Research and Education Program at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center's Women's Heart Center.[61] In September that year, Parade magazine included Barbara Streisand on their Giving Back Fund's second annual Giving Back 30 survey, "a ranking of the celebrities who have made the largest donations to charity in 2007 according to public records",[62] as the third most generous celebrity. The Giving Back Fund claimed Barbara Streisand donated $11 million, which The Barbara Streisand Foundation distributed.

At Julien’s Auctions in October 2009, Barbara Streisand , a long-time collector of art and furniture, sold 526 items with all the proceeds going to her foundation. Items included a costume from Funny Lady and a vintage dental cabinet purchased by the performer at 18 years old. The sale’s most valuable lot was a painting by Kees van Dongen.[63] In December 2011 Barbara Streisand agreed to sing at a fundraising gala for Israel Defence Forces charities.[64]

References in popular culture

One memorable parody of Barbara Streisand 's iconic status has been on the sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live in the recurring skit Coffee Talk where character Linda Richman, played by Mike Myers, hosts a talk show dedicated to, among other things, the adoration of Barbara Streisand . Barbara Streisand , in turn, made an unannounced guest appearance on the show, surprising Myers and guests, Madonna and Roseanne Barr. Mike Myers also appeared as the Linda Richman character on stage with Barbara Streisand at her 1994 MGM Grand concert, as well as a few of the 1994 Barbara Streisand tour shows.[65]

Barbara Streisand is mentioned in the sitcom Will & Grace, particularly by the character Jack McFarland. Songs made famous by Barbara Streisand , such as "Papa, Can You Hear Me?" from Yentl and "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man" from The Broadway Album are reproduced by characters in the show.

At least four episodes of the animated sitcom The Simpsons refer to Barbara Streisand . Outside Springfield Elementary School, announcing Lisa's jazz concert and noting tickets have been sold out, is an advertisement for a Barbara Streisand concert in the same venue for the following day, with tickets still on sale. In "Fear of Flying", after Marge undergoes therapy, Barbara Streisand informs the therapist that whenever Barbara Streisand hears the wind blow, she'll hear it saying "Lowenstein", Barbara Streisand 's therapist character in The Prince of Tides, even though Marge's therapist is named Zweig. Another reference comes in "Sleeping with the Enemy" when Bart exclaims after seeing Lisa make a snow-angel in a cake on the kitchen table, "At least she's not singing Barbara Streisand ", in reference to Nelson Muntz singing "Papa Can You Hear Me?" from Yentl earlier in the episode. In "Simple Simpson", a patriotic country singer says that Barbara Streisand is unpatriotic and could be pleased by spitting on the flag and strangling a bald eagle.

Another enduring satirical reference is in the animated series South Park, most notably in the episode "Mecha-Barbara Streisand ", where Barbara Streisand is portrayed as a self-important, evil, gigantic robotic dinosaur with a terrible singing voice about to conquer the universe before being defeated by Robert Smith of The Cure. On another occasion, the Halloween episode "Spookyfish" is promoted for a week as being done in "Spooky-Vision", which involves Barbara Streisand's face seen at times during the episode in the four corners of the screen. At the end of the feature film South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut, her name is used as a powerful curse word, a gag repeated in the episode "Osama bin Laden Has Farty Pants". The Mecha-Barbara Streisand character made a return in the Season 14 episodes "200" and "201", as one of several celebrities the show had lampooned over the years.

In the Family Guy episode "Mind Over Murder", Lois sings a cabaret act with "Don't Rain on My Parade"—originally sung by Barbara Streisand in Funny Girl—only slowed down and jazzier, as an act of defiance to Peter. In "Stewie Kills Lois", Peter receives life insurance after Lois' apparent death, and claims that he has more money than Barbara Streisand . This was followed by a cut scene showing Barbara Streisand blowing money out of her nose. In "Wasted Talent", Barbara Streisand and husband James Brolin are shown sitting together at the dinner table, with Barbara Streisand remarking "I'm glad I married a regular person and not a celebrity".

Barbara Streisand is referenced frequently on the Fox TV musical series Glee. The character Rachel (Lea Michele) mentions that Barbara Streisand refused to alter her nose in order to become famous in the show's third episode "Acafellas". Also, in the mid-season finale of Glee, Rachel sings the Barbara Streisand anthem "Don't Rain on My Parade". In the episode "Hell-O", Barbara Streisand says that Barbara Streisand will be heartbroken for life, "Like Barbara in The Way We Were." In the same episode, Jesse St. James (Jonathan Groff) criticizes Rachel's performance of "Don't Rain on My Parade" by saying that Barbara Streisand "lacked Barbra's emotional depth."

In the episode "Theatricality", Rachel is spying on the opposing team's dance rehearsal when the director, Shelby Corcoran (Idina Menzel), expresses dissatisfaction at the team's routine. Barbara Streisand demonstrates how it's done with the title song from Funny Girl, and Rachel, sitting in the audience, whispers to her friend, "Exactly what I would have done—Barbara. I could do it in my sleep." In the episode "Grilled Cheesus" Rachel sings Barbra's famous song from the movie Yentl—Papa, Can You Hear Me?—to help support Kurt's dad Burt after undergoing a heart attack. Rachel sang it in a park with Finn sitting at her side/in Burt Hummel's hospital room. Barbara Streisand told Finn that Barbara Streisand "wanted nothing to come between her and God, and Yentl sang it outside in the movie." [66] On the episode Born This Way Barbara is mentioned when Rachel is debating whether or not to get a nose job, Kurt Hummel and the rest of the glee club set up a "Barbara-vention" of a flashmob to the popular hit "Barbara Streisand " by Duck Sauce.

The characters of Kurt and Rachel also sang the "Get Happy/Happy Days are Here Again" duet originally heard during Barbara Streisand's 1963 appearance with Judy Garland on Garland's weekly TV series. In the season three episode "I Am Unicorn," Kurt sings Barbara Barbara Streisand 's "I'm the Greatest Star" from the musical Funny Girl, stating "[He] has permission from the woman herself," actually meaning Rachel Berry. When Glee won the prize for "Best TV Series-Comedy Or Musical" at the 2010 Golden Globe Awards, creator Ryan Murphy quipped on stage, "Thank you to the Hollywood Foreign Press and Miss Barbara Streisand ."

In the sitcom The Nanny, Barbara Streisand is viewed as a divine figure by Fran Fine throughout the sitcom's run. When asked by her boss who Barbara Streisand would save if her mother and Barbara Streisand were drowning, Fran replies "I'd save Ma, Barbara can walk on water," Another example is in "The Passed-Over Story," when Fran hears that Barbara Streisand and James Brolin will be arriving at the airport, Fran runs towards the door yelling "It's the miracle of Passover, the Messiah is coming".

On film

In movies, Barbara Streisand is remembered as the favorite of the character Howard Brackett, played by Kevin Kline, who finally admits to being gay while standing at the altar in the 1997 romantic comedy In & Out. His unfortunate bride-to-be, played by Joan Cusack, cries out in frustration to family and friends present, "Does anybody here KNOW how many times I've had to sit through Funny Lady?" In an earlier scene, Howard is taunted by a friend during an argument at a bar with a jeering, "The studio thought that Barbara was too ol-l-ld to play Yentl." The film also mentions the album Color Me Barbara. Barbra's signature tune, "People", is played by a school orchestra in honor of teacher Howard as the story wraps at the end of the credits. This and similar references refer to her popularity among gay men.

In the 1996 comedy "The Associate", Whoopi Goldberg plays a business woman, Laurel Ayers, who creates a business associate, Robert S. Cutty, who is said to have known and dated Barbara Streisand . In addition to having an autographed picture of Barbara Streisand in her office, Ayers also has a cross-dressing friend who dresses up to resemble Barbara Streisand throughout the film.

The characters Carla and Connie, as aspiring song-and-dance acts in the 2004 comedy Connie and Carla, include four Barbara Streisand references. They sing "Papa, Can You Hear Me?" and "Memory" at an airport lounge and "Don't Rain on My Parade" onstage in a gay bar, and talk about the plot of Yentl at the climax of the film after they ask how many in their audience have seen the movie (everyone raised their hands).

In music

Sound clips of Barbara Streisand 's heated exchange with a supporter of former U.S. president George W. Bush were sampled in the 2009 Lucian Piane dance song "Bale Out", making it sound as if Barbara Streisand were arguing with actor Christian Bale (whose recorded outbursts during the filming of Terminator Salvation were the centerpiece of the song).[67]

"Barbara Streisand " is a disco house song by American-Canadian DJ duo Duck Sauce. It was released on September 10, 2010. The song peaked at number one in Poland, Belgium, the Netherlands, Finland, Switzerland and Austria. It became a top ten hit in Australia, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy and the UK.

On stage

Daniel Stern's 2003 Off-Broadway play Barbra's Wedding was set against the backdrop of Barbara Streisand 's 1998 wedding to James Brolin.

"Barbara Streisand effect"

In 2003, Barbara Streisand sued aerial photographer Kenneth Adelman for displaying a photograph of her Malibu, California, home, along with other photos of the California coastline. Her suit was dismissed under the anti-SLAPP provisions of California law.[68][69][70] Mike Masnick of Techdirt coined the term "Barbara Streisand effect" in January 2005 to describe the publicity generated by Barbara Streisand 's efforts to suppress the publication of the photograph.
Awards

In 1984, Barbara Streisand was awarded the Women in Film Crystal Award for outstanding women who, through their endurance and the excellence of their work, have helped to expand the role of women within the entertainment industry.[71] Barbara Streisand also received the National Medal of Arts[72] in 2000 and the Kennedy Center Honors in 2008. Barbara Streisand was inducted as an officer of France's Legion of Honour in 2007.

Barbara Streisand is the only woman to have an album reach #1 on the US charts and win the Academy Award for Best Actress.

Music awards

Barbara Streisand 's works have been nominated for over 57 Grammy Awards; Barbara Streisand won 15 of these, including two special awards. Barbara Streisand has been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame three times. In 2011, Barbara Streisand was honored as MusiCares Person of the Year by the Grammy Foundation.

1963 Grammy Awards Album of the Year The Barbara Streisand Album Won
Best Female Vocal Performance Won
Record of the Year "Happy Days Are Here Again" Nominated
1964 Best Female Vocal Performance People Won
Album of the Year Nominated
Record of the Year Nominated
1965 Best Female Vocal Performance My Name Is Barbara Won
Album of the Year Nominated
1966 Best Female Vocal Performance Color Me Barbara Nominated
Album of the Year Nominated
1968 Best Contemporary-Pop Vocal Performance Funny Girl Soundtrack Nominated
1970 AGVA Georgie Award Entertainer of the Year — Won
1972 Grammy Awards Best Pop Female Vocal Performance "Sweet Inspiration / Where You Lead" Nominated
AGVA Georgie Award Singing Star of the Year — Won
1975 People's Choice Awards Favorite Female Singer of the Year Won
1976 Grammy Awards Best Classical Vocal Soloist Performance Classical Barbara Nominated
1977 Best Pop Female Vocal Performance "Evergreen" (from A Star Is Born) Won
Song of the Year Won
Record of the Year Nominated
Best Original Score – Motion Picture or Television Special Nominated
AGVA Georgie Award Singing Star of the Year — Won
1978 Grammy Awards Best Pop Female Vocal Performance "You Don't Bring Me Flowers" (with Neil Diamond) Nominated
1979 Record of the Year Nominated
Best Pop Vocal Performance – Duo, Group, or Chorus Nominated
1980 Guilty (with Barry Gibb) Won
Album of the Year Nominated
Record of the Year "Woman in Love" Nominated
Best Pop Vocal Female Performance Nominated
AGVA Georgie Awards Singing Star of the Year — Won
1985 People's Choice Awards Favorite All-Around Female Entertainer Won
1986 Grammy Awards Best Pop Vocal Female Performance The Broadway Album Won
Album of the Year Nominated
Best Instrumental Arrangement Acompanying Vocal "Being Alive" Nominated
1987 Best Pop Vocal Female Performance One Voice Nominated
Best Music Video Performance Nominated
1988 People's Choice Awards Favorite All-Time Musical Performer — Won
1991 Grammy Awards Best Traditional Pop Vocal Performance "Warm All Over" Nominated
1992 Grammy Legend Award — Special award
1993 Best Traditional Pop Vocal Performance Back to Broadway Nominated
1994 Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award — Special award
Best Traditional Pop Vocal Performance Barbara: The Concert Nominated
Best Pop Vocal Female Performance "Ordinary Miracles" Nominated
1997 Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals "Tell Him" (with Celine Dion) Nominated
"I Finally Found Someone" (with Bryan Adams) Nominated
2000 Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album Timeless – Live In Concert Nominated
2002 Christmas Memories Nominated
2003 The Movie Album Nominated
2004 Grammy Hall of Fame Funny Girl (Barbara Streisand and Sydney Chaplin) Inducted
2006 The Barbara Streisand Album
2007 Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album Live in Concert 2006 Nominated
2008 Grammy Hall of Fame "The Way We Were" Inducted
2011 Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album Love Is the Answer Nominated
2012 Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album What Matters Most Nominated
Film awards

Barbara Streisand has won 2 Academy Awards (Oscar) against 5 nominations, 2 for acting, 2 for song writing and 1 for Best Picture...

1969 Academy Awards Best Actress Funny Girl Won
Golden Globe Awards Best Actress in a Motion Picture (Comedy or Musical) Won
1970 Hello, Dolly! Nominated
Henrietta World Film Favorite — Special award
1971 Best Actress in a Motion Picture (Comedy or Musical) The Owl and the Pussycat Nominated
Henrietta World Film Favorite — Special award
1974 Academy Awards Best Actress The Way We Were Nominated
Golden Globe Awards Best Actress in a Motion Picture (Drama) Nominated
1975 Henrietta World Film Favorite — Special award
1976 Best Actress in a Motion Picture (Comedy or Musical) Funny Lady Nominated
1977 Academy Awards Best Original Song "Evergreen" (from A Star Is Born) Won
Golden Globe Awards Best Actress in a Motion Picture (Comedy or Musical) Won
Best Original Song Won
1978 Henrietta World Film Favorite — Special award
1984 Best Actress in a Motion Picture (Comedy or Musical) Yentl Nominated
Best Director (Motion Picture) Won
Best Motion Picture (Comedy Or Musical) Won
1988 Best Actress in Motion Picture (Drama) Nuts Nominated
Best Motion Picture (Drama) Nominated
1992 Academy Awards Best Picture The Prince of Tides Nominated
Golden Globe Awards Best Director (Motion Picture) Nominated
Golden Globe Awards Best Motion Picture - (Drama) Nominated
1997 Academy Awards Best Original Song "I Finally Found Someone" (from The Mirror Has Two Faces) Nominated
Golden Globe Awards Best Actress in a Motion Picture (Comedy or Musical) The Mirror Has Two Faces Nominated
Best Original Song "I Finally Found Someone" (from The Mirror Has Two Faces) Nominated
2000 Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award for Lifetime Achievement — Special award

1984 nominated for a Golden Raspberry Award as Worst Male actor for her (male) performance in Yentl.

Appearances

Broadway performances

1961–1963 I Can Get It for You Wholesale Nominated—Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical
1964–1965 Funny Girl Nominated—Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical
West End performances
Year Title Notes
1966 Funny Girl April 13, 1966 – July 16, 1966 at the Prince of Wales Theatre, London.
Television specials
Year Title Notes
1965 My Name Is Barbara Aired April 28, 1965
1966 Color Me Barbara Aired March 30, 1966
1967 The Belle of 14th Street Aired October 11, 1967
1968 A Happening in Central Park Aired June 17, 1967
1973 Barbara Streisand ...And Other Musical Instruments Nov 2, 1973
1975 Funny Girl to Funny Lady
1976 Barbara: With One More Look at You
1983 A Film Is Born: The Making of 'Yentl'
1986 Putting it Together: The Making of The Broadway Album
1987 One Voice
1994 Barbara Streisand : The Concert Also producer and director
1990 Barbara Sings Celine
1990 Barbara Sings Celine 2001 Barbara Streisand : Timeless Aired on FOX TV February 14, 2001 (1 hour edited version)
1990 Barbara Sings Celine 2009 Barbara Streisand : Live in Concert Aired on CBS April 25, 2009[73] (Filmed in Florida in 2006)
2009 Friday Night with Jonathan Ross First Ever Live Performance on UK Television
Tours and live performances
Main article: List of Barbara Streisand concert tours and live performances
Year Title Continents Box-office benefits Total audience
1966 An Evening with Barbara Streisand (Tour) North America $480,000 60,000
1994 Barbara Streisand : The Concert Tour North America and Europe $50 million 400,000
2000 Timeless: Live in Concert Tour North America and Oceania $70 million 200,000
2006–2007 Barbara Streisand : The Tour North America and Europe $119.5 million 425,000

Discography

1963: The Barbara Streisand Album
1963: The Second Barbara Streisand Album
1964: The Third Album
1964: People
1965: My Name Is Barbara
1965: My Name Is Barbara, Two...
1966: Color Me Barbara
1966: Je m'appelle Barbara
1967: Simply Barbara Streisand
1967: A Christmas Album
1969: What About Today?
1971: Stoney End
1971: Barbara Joan Barbara Streisand
1973: Barbara Streisand ...And Other Musical Instruments
1974: The Way We Were
1974: ButterFly
1975: Lazy Afternoon
1976: Classical Barbara
1976: A Star is Born
1977: Barbara Streisand Superman
1978: Songbird
1979: Wet
1980: Guilty
1981: Memories
1984: Emotion
1985: The Broadway Album
1988: Till I Loved You
1993: Back to Broadway
1997: Higher Ground
1999: A Love Like Ours
2001: Christmas Memories
2003: The Movie Album
2005: Guilty Pleasures
2009: Love Is the Answer
2011: What Matters Most

Filmography

1968 Funny Girl Fanny Brice Academy Award for Best Actress Tied with Katharine Hepburn for The Lion in Winter
David di Donatello for Best Foreign Actress Tied with Mia Farrow for Rosemary's Baby
Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role also for Hello, Dolly!
1969 Hello, Dolly! Dolly Levi Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role also for Funny Girl
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
1970 On a Clear Day You Can See Forever Daisy Gamble / Melinda Tentres
The Owl and the Pussycat Doris Wilgus / Wadsworth / Wellington / Waverly Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
1972 What's Up, Doc? Judy Maxwell
Up the Sandbox Margaret Reynolds
1973 The Way We Were Katie Morosky David di Donatello for Best Foreign Actress Tied with Tatum O'Neal for Paper Moon
Nominated—Academy Award for Best Actress
Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama
1974 For Pete's Sake Henrietta 'Henry' Robbins
1975 Funny Lady Fanny Brice Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
1976 A Star Is Born Esther Hoffman Howard Academy Award for Best Original Song Shared with Paul Williams (lyrics) for the song "Evergreen (Love Theme from A Star Is Born)"
Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song Shared with Paul Williams (lyrics) for the song "Evergreen (Love Theme from A Star Is Born)"
Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Film Music Shared with Paul Williams, Kenny Ascher, Rupert Holmes, Leon Russell, Kenny Loggins, Alan Bergman, Marilyn Bergman, Donna Weiss
1979 The Main Event Hillary Kramer
1981 All Night Long Cheryl Gibbons Nominated—Razzie Award for Worst Actress
1983 Yentl Yentl / Anshel also director and producer
Golden Globe Award for Best Director
Nastro d'Argento for Best New Foreign Director
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
Nominated—Razzie Award for Worst Actor
1987 Nuts Claudia Faith Draper Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama
1991 The Prince of Tides Dr. Susan Lowenstein also director and producer
Nominated—Academy Award for Best Picture Shared with Andrew S. Karsch
Nominated—Directors Guild of America Award
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Director
1996 The Mirror Has Two Faces Rose Morgan also director and producer
Nominated—Academy Award for Best Original Song Shared with Marvin Hamlisch, Robert John Lange and Bryan Adams for the song "I Finally Found Someone"
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song Shared with Marvin Hamlisch, Robert John Lange and Bryan Adams for the song "I Finally Found Someone"
2004 Meet the Fockers Roz Focker
2010 Little Fockers Roz Focker Nominated—Razzie Award for Worst Supporting Actress
2012 The Guilt Trip Joyce Brewster
2013-14 Gypsy Rose Hovick Expected to be released Holiday 2013 to early 2014.

References

Autobiography

Further reading

External links

• Official website
• BarbraNews.com
• Barbra-Archives.com
• IMDB
• AllRovi
• IBDB
• IOBDB

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