Liza Minnelli is one of an elite group of artists to have achieved the “quintuple crown” of entertainment honors, having won three Tony Awards, an Oscar, two Golden Globe Awards, an Emmy and also a special Grammy. In 1965, at age 17, Liza became the youngest artist ever to win a Tony Award for a musical role for her Broadway debut in Kander and Ebb’s Flora, the Red Menace. She was awarded a special Tony in 1973 for breaking the box office record at the Winter Garden Theater in her one-woman...
Liza Minnelli is one of an elite group of artists to have achieved the “quintuple crown” of entertainment honors, having won three Tony Awards, an Oscar, two Golden Globe Awards, an Emmy and also a special Grammy. In 1965, at age 17, Liza became the youngest artist ever to win a Tony Award for a musical role for her Broadway debut in Kander and Ebb’s Flora, the Red Menace. She was awarded a special Tony in 1973 for breaking the box office record at the Winter Garden Theater in her one-woman show, Liza at the Winter Garden. In 1975, with only one week of rehearsal, she replaced an ailing Gwen Verdon in Kander and Ebb’s Chicago, played to standing-room-only crowds for five weeks, and went on to win her third Tony Award for Best Actress in 1978 for her performance in Kander and Ebb’s The Act. In 1984, Liza re-united with her Chicago co-star and close friend, Chita Rivera, and once again with Kander and Ebb, in the musical The Rink, which earned Liza a Tony nomination as Best Actress. In 1997, Liza returned to Broadway to substitute for her friend Julie Andrews in her hit musical Victor/Victoria. Liza made her motion picture debut in Universal’s Charlie Bubbles in 1968. The next year, she starred in Paramount Pictures’ The Sterile Cuckoo, for which she received her first Academy Award nomination as Best Actress. Her now-legendary portrayal of Sally Bowles in Bob Fosse’s 1972 classic film musical, Cabaret, earned Liza the Academy Award and Golden Globe Award for Best Actress. Other motion picture credits include Tell Me That You Love Me, Junie Moon; Lucky Lady; Silent Movie; A Matter of Time (directed by her late father); New York, New York, opposite Robert DeNiro; Arthur with Dudley Moore; it’s sequel, Arthur 2: On The Rocks; Rent-a-Cop; and Stepping Out. Liza’s television appearances have garnered a total of five Emmy nominations. In 1972, her first television special, the trademark “Liza with a Z” received an Emmy for Outstanding Single Program—Variety or Popular Music. Two Liza TV classics followed in 1980: “Goldie and Liza Together” and “Baryshnikov on Broadway,” which showcased Liza and ballet legend Mikhail Baryshnikov in a one-hour salute to the American musical theatre. Television also provided the vehicle for “A Time To Live,” based on the best-selling book by Mary Lou Weisman, which earned her a second Golden Globe Award for Best Actress. Other television credits include ABC’s “Sam Found Out;” Showtime’s “Parallel Lives,” a unique improvised drama; and CBS’s “The West Side Waltz,” a film adaptation of Ernest Thompson’s award-winning Broadway play, in which she starred with fellow Oscar winners Shirley MacLaine and Kathy Bates. Liza’s television appearances also include the Emmy-nominated PBS special “Liza – Live at Radio City Music Hall,” PBS’ “Minnelli On Minnelli,” HBO’s “Liza in London” and the pay-per-view “The Ultimate Event,” headlining with Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr. In May 1987, Liza completed an unprecedented three-week concert engagement at New York’s historical Carnegie Hall and remains the first and, to date, only entertainer in the hall’s 100-year history to completely sell out three weeks of appearances. LIZA MINNELLI Biography (Page Two) In 1988, entertainment history was made again when Liza toured throughout the U.S., Europe, Japan and Australia with her longtime friends and mentors Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr. in The Ultimate Event, bringing together three musical legends for a once-in-a-lifetime concert experience. In April 1991, Liza broke a 60-year-old box office record at Radio City Music Hall in Stepping Out at Radio City, touring the show throughout the U.S., and returning to Radio City in 1992 for seven encore performances, which instantly sold out. The show was recorded by Sony Entertainment for PBS and subsequently released on CD/audio cassette and home video. Her recording career includes acclaimed releases such as Liza with a Z, Liza Minnelli: The Singer, Liza Minnelli: Live at the Winter Garden, Tropical Nights, The Act, Liza Minnelli: Live at Carnegie Hall, The Rink and Liza Minnelli: Live at Radio City Music Hall. Results, a pop album produced by The Pet Shop Boys yielded the hit dance single “Losing My Mind,” which earned Liza a gold record in England. Liza’s 1996 concert recording Gently is a collection of sultry arrangements of American popular standards. Most recently, Ms. Minnelli made a special appearance on the “Miracle on 34th Street” Concert at Madison Square Garden where she sang here classic “New York, New York” in tribute to the firemen, police officers and EMTs of the September 11, 2001 tragedies. Prior to that, Ms. Minnelli performed on the CBS television special “Michael Jackson: 30th Anniversary Celebration” where she received a standing ovation for her version of his hit song “You Are Not Alone.” A new CD entitled “Liza Minnelli: Ultimate Collection” was recently released by Hip-O Records which showcases 25 years of Ms. Minnelli’s extraordinary career. In May of 2002, Liza returned to Broadway at New York’s Beacon Theater after a triumphant run in London of her critically acclaimed show, “Liza’s Back!” which was produced and created by her husband David Gest. The incomparable Ms. Minnelli played to more than 15,000 wildly enthusiastic fans, proving indeed that “Liza’s Back!” Ms. Minnelli’s return to the London stage was heralded each night not only by her fans but critics alike which inspired the London Times to write that “ Minnelli is as good as it gets! … She tore the roof off.” There were more than a dozen glowing reviews praising Minnelli, including The Sunday Express who stated, “Liza Minnelli is inscribed in the hearts and minds of all who have experienced the profound impact of her talent.” The Guardian newspaper summed up the Royal Albert Hall appearances as, “Liza’s back, and she’s still one of a kind.” Clive Davis, president of J Records, was so overwhelmed by Liza’s performance that he signed her on opening night to a recording contract. Her new CD, “Liza’s Back!,” will be released on J Records in October, 2002. Liza Minnelli and David Gest will star in a new VH1 musical reality series, “Liza and David” slated to premiere in late 2002. The show will take a personal, private look at celebrities in a new and exciting way. The weekly series will follow Liza and David as they host intimate weekly dinner parties with an eclectic mix of celebrity friends, musicians, actors and actresses, sports heroes, authors and other luminaries in the LIZA MINNELLI BIOGRAPHY (PAGE 3) couple’s fabulous Manhattan penthouse, complete with musical performances and unexpected, unguarded moments and many surprise guests. In 2002, she will be honored with a major television special, “Liza’s Back! An All-Star Salute.” Among those performing on the show are: Michael Jackson (who will perform a ten minute dance number with her from “The Band Wagon,” a film which was directed by her father Vincente Minnelli), Usher, Ben Vereen, Mary J. Blige, Sheryl Crow, Mya, Chita Rivera (the latter two stars will join her to perform a number from the hit musical “Chicago”), Academy Award winning Best Supporting Actor Joel Grey (who will reunite with her to recreate magical moments from the classic movie musical “Cabaret” for which Miss Minnelli won a Best Actress Oscar), Billy Gilman and some very special surprise guests. On March 16, 2002, Ms. Minnelli married producer David Gest (“Michael Jackson: 30th Anniversary Celebration”) at the Marble Collegiate Church in New York.
