During 1961, Minnelli was an apprentice at the Cape Cod Melody Tent in Hyannis, Massachusetts. She appeared in the chorus of Flower Drum Song and played the part of Muriel in Take Me Along. She began performing professionally at the age of 17 in 1963 in an Off-Broadway revival of the musical Best Foot Forward, for which she received the Theatre World Award, and also toured in The Fantasticks, opposite Elliott Gould.[20]
The next year, her mother invited her to perform with her in concert at the London Palladium. Both concerts were recorded and released as an album. Minnelli attended Scarsdale High School for one year, starring in a production of The Diary of Anne Frank that then went to Israel on tour. She turned to Broadway at 19, and won her first Tony Award as a leading actress for Flora the Red Menace. It was the first time that she worked with the musical pair John Kander and Fred Ebb.[21]
Music
Minnelli began as a nightclub singer as an adolescent, making her professional nightclub debut at the age of 19 at the Shoreham Hotel in Washington, D.C. That same year she began appearing in other clubs and on stage in Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Chicago, Miami, and New York City. Her success as a live performer led her to record several albums for Capitol Records: Liza! Liza! (1964), It Amazes Me (1965), and There Is a Time (1966). In her early years, she recorded traditional pop standards as well as show tunes from various musicals in which she starred. Because of this fact, William Ruhlmann named her "Barbra Streisand's little sister".[22] The Capitol albums Liza! Liza!, It Amazes Me, and There Is a Time were reissued on the two-CD compilation The Capitol Years in 2001, in their entirety.
In 2006, Minnelli appeared on My Chemical Romance's album The Black Parade, providing backing vocals and singing a solo part with Gerard Way on the track "Mama". Minnelli was nominated in 2009 for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album for her studio recording Liza's at the Palace...!, based on her hit Broadway show. Minnelli released an album on the Decca Records label titled Confessions on September 21, 2010.[27]
Minnelli's first appearance on film is as the baby in the final shot of her mother's film In the Good Old Summertime (1949). Her first credited film role was as the love interest in Charlie Bubbles (1967), Albert Finney's only film as director and star, although four years earlier, she did voiceover work for the animated film Journey Back to Oz, a sequel to The Wizard of Oz. Minnelli was the voice of Dorothy (a character played in the earlier film by her mother Judy Garland) in what would have been her first credited film role had it been released in 1964 as planned—the Filmation production was delayed, eventually being released in the UK during 1972.
Minnelli appeared in The Sterile Cuckoo (1969), Alan J. Pakula's first feature film, as Pookie Adams, a needy, eccentric teenager. Her performance was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role. She played another eccentric character in Tell Me That You Love Me, Junie Moon (1970), directed by Otto Preminger. A nude scene in that film, filmed in a Massachusetts cemetery, resulted in a misdemeanor complaint by family of those buried there, and a "Liza Minnelli Bill" was introduced the following year to penalise filming in Massachusetts cemeteries without permission.[28][29]
Following the success of Cabaret, Bob Fosse and Minnelli teamed for Liza with a 'Z'. A Concert for Television, a television special. The program aired two times on TV and was not seen again until a DVD release in 2006.
In 1964, Minnelli appeared as Minnie in her first television dramatic role in the episode "Nightingale for Sale" on Craig Stevens's short-lived series Mr. Broadway. In 1965, she starred in the television special, The Dangerous Christmas of Red Riding Hood. A soundtrack was released to coincide with the specials. In 1970, she headlined her first television special, entitled Liza, with guest stars Anthony Newley, and Randy Newman. In 1972, she starred in the Bob Fosse directed Liza with a Z.
In 1980, she made two television specials, Goldie and Liza Together, with Goldie Hawn, and An Evening with Liza Minnelli. In 1984, she made a guest appearance as Princess Alecia in 'The Princess and the Pea' episode of Faerie Tale Theatre. In 1985, she starred in a made-for-TV movie, A Time to Live, and in 1988, she appeared in Sam Found Out: A Triple Play.
In December 1992, American Public Television aired Liza Minnelli Live from Radio City Music Hall produced by Phil Ramone and Chris Giordano. The show received six Emmy nominations and won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Music and Lyrics, awarded to Fred Ebb and John Kander. This was followed by appearances in two more made-for-TV movies: Parallel Lives, and The West Side Waltz, in 1994 and 1995, respectively.
In November 2009, American Public Television aired Liza's at the Palace, taped from September 30 to October 1, 2009, in Las Vegas at the MGM Grand's Hollywood Theatre.[34] The executive producers of the taping, Craig Zadan and Neil Meron, were previously involved with the 2005 rerelease of 1972's Emmy- and Peabody Award-winning Liza with a Z.[35]
Later career
Minnelli returned to Broadway in 1997, taking over the title role in the musical Victor/Victoria, replacing Julie Andrews. In his review, New York Times critic Ben Brantley wrote "her every stage appearance is perceived as a victory of show-business stamina over psychic frailty. She asks for love so nakedly and earnestly, it seems downright vicious not to respond."[36]
After a serious case of viral encephalitis in 2000, doctors predicted that Minnelli would spend the rest of her life in a wheelchair and perhaps not be able to speak again. However, taking vocal and dance lessons daily (especially with Sam Harris, Luigi Faccuito, Ron Lewis, and Angela Bacari), she managed to recover. She appeared on a September 19, 2001, episode of The Rosie O'Donnell Show, notable because it was Rosie's first show back following the September 11 attacks. Despite having had vocal surgery shortly before, she sang her signature song, "New York, New York", and received an enthusiastic ovation. She also returned to the stage in 2001 when asked by long-time friend Michael Jackson to perform at Madison Square Garden in New York City where she sang "Never Never Land" and the televised "You Are Not Alone" at the Michael Jackson: 30th Anniversary Special concert produced by future husband David Gest. Minnelli told reporters: "I am stable as a table."[37]
Gest was so impressed with Minnelli's stamina and ability to stun audiences that he produced her in Liza's Back in Spring 2002, performing to rave reviews in London and New York City. The tour featured a tribute to her mother: after years of declining fans' pleas for her to sing Garland's signature song "Over the Rainbow", she concluded Act 1 with the final refrain of her mother's anthem to an instant ovation.[citation needed]
From 2003 through 2005, she appeared as a recurring character on the Emmy Award-winning TV sitcom Arrested Development as Lucille Austero (also known as "Lucille 2"), the lover of both the sexually and socially awkward Buster Bluth and Buster's brother Gob. Minnelli appeared in the role for the show's fourth season in 2013.[38]
On December 14, 2004, Minnelli made her first appearance in the UK after a long absence, performing as a special guest at the annual Royal Variety Performance. The performance was presented by the BBC, and was attended by Charles, Prince of Wales. It was staged at the London Coliseum, celebrating both its centenary year and the theatre's re-opening after an extensive 4 year restoration.[39]
In 2005, Minnelli made her first film appearance in more than 15 years, in The Oh in Ohio.
In September 2006, Minnelli made a guest appearance on the long-running drama Law & Order: Criminal Intent in "Masquerade", a Halloween-themed episode, broadcast on October 31, 2006.[40]
Minnelli also completed guest vocals on My Chemical Romance's 2006 concept album The Black Parade, portraying "Mother War", a dark conception of the main character's mother in the song "Mama".[41]
Minnelli at The Heart Truth Fashion Show 2008
In 2007, it was announced that Minnelli was working on an album in tribute to Kay Thompson. This turned into Minnelli's return to Broadway in a new solo concert at the Palace Theatre titled Liza's at The Palace...!, which ran from December 3, 2008, through January 4, 2009.[42][43] In her second act, she performed a series of numbers created by Thompson.[44]
Also in 2010, Minnelli released an album of a number of American standards "unplugged" with long-time collaborator Billy Stritch, showing a sultrier and softer, more interpretive side to her artistry. The songs are said to have been recorded several years prior and later released as the album Confessions.[46]
In 2024, Minnelli announced her plans to release a memoir, to be published in 2026.[48]
Personal life
Minnelli has long suffered from alcoholism and has been addicted to prescription drugs, originating from a Valium prescription after her mother died.[49] Her use of recreational drugs in the 1970s was noted by Andy Warhol, who in a 1978 diary entry recalled Minnelli arriving at Halston's house and imploring the host to "Give me every drug you've got."[49][50] Along with Warhol and Bianca Jagger, Minnelli made frequent appearances at New York City nightclubs during the late 1970s, including Studio 54. Minnelli left her 1984 musical The Rink to enter the Betty Ford Clinic.[51]
During an Australian visit in 1964, Minnelli and her then-boyfriend Peter Allen were invited to the opening of the Compass Centre in Bankstown, Sydney. They were awarded the titles of King and Queen of the Compass Centre.[55]
Marriages and relationships
Minnelli has married and divorced four times. Her first marriage was to entertainer Peter Allen on March 3, 1967.[56] Australian-born Allen was Judy Garland's protégé in the mid-1960s.[57] Minnelli and Allen agreed to a trial separation on April 9, 1970.[58] Their divorce was finalized on July 24, 1974.[59] Minnelli told The Advocate editor-in-chief Judy Wieder in September 1996, "I married Peter, and he didn't tell me he was gay. Everyone knew but me. And I found out ... well, let me put it this way: I'll never surprise anybody coming home as long as I live. I call first!"[60]
Minnelli married Jack Haley Jr., a producer and director, on September 15, 1974.[63] His father, Jack Haley, was Minnelli's mother's co-star in The Wizard of Oz. They divorced in April 1979.[64]
Minnelli was married to Mark Gero, a sculptor and stage manager, from December 4, 1979, until their divorce in January 1992.[65]
Minnelli was married to David Gest, a concert promoter, from March 16, 2002, until their separation in July 2003 and divorce in April 2007.[66][67] The wedding boasted over 1200 guests at the Marble Collegiate Church in Manhattan, with Michael Jackson as the best man, Elizabeth Taylor as the matron of honor, and a bridal party that included Mia Farrow, Gina Lollobrigida, Petula Clark, Mya, and Janet Leigh among others. Gest was reportedly gay, as was her first husband.[68][69] In a 2003 lawsuit, Gest alleged that Minnelli beat him in alcohol-induced rages during their marriage.[70] Minnelli denied the accusations, claiming Gest was simply after her money. The suit was dismissed in September 2006 for lack of triable issue of fact.[71]
Minnelli has no children despite numerous attempts; one pregnancy left her with a hiatal hernia as a result of the medical steps taken to try to save the baby.[17]
Philanthropy
Minnelli, in 1993, visiting the tomb of Eva Perón in Buenos Aires (in the early 1990s, Minnelli was in the running for the role of Evita)
Throughout her lifetime, Minnelli has served on various charities and causes. She served on the board of directors of The Institutes for The Achievement of Human Potential (IAHP) for 20 years, a nonprofit educational organization that introduces parents to the field of child brain development. In a 2006 interview with Randy Rice at Broadwayworld.com, Minnelli said that she was the person who told Elizabeth Taylor about HIV/AIDS while talking about their mutual friend Rock Hudson.[75] She has also dedicated much time to amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research, which was co-founded by Taylor.
In 2007, she stated in an interview with Palm Springs Life: "AmfAR is important to me because I've lost so many friends that I knew [to AIDS]".[76] In 1994, she recorded the Kander & Ebb tune "The Day After That" and donated the proceeds to AIDS research.[77] The same year, she performed the song in front of thousands in Central Park at the 25th anniversary of the Stonewall riots.
^"Liza Minnelli Opens 3-Week Carnegie Date". The New York Times. May 31, 1987. ...and her voice—a ripe, rounded alto whose physical qualities remain uncannily reminiscent of her mother, Judy Garland...
