Bette Midler

Bette Midler, born December 1, 1945, in Honolulu, Hawaii, is an American actress, comedian, singer, author, and book writer whose Broadway career spans 1964 to 2017. The third of four children born to Ruth and Fred Midler, she grew up in Aiea and attended Radford High School in Honolulu, where she was voted both "Most Talkative" and "Most Dramatic" by her classmates. Her father worked as a painter at a U.S. Navy base and painted houses, while her mother was a seamstress and housewife. Both parents were originally from New Jersey, and the family was among the few Jewish households in a predominantly Asian neighborhood. Midler was named after actress Bette Davis, though the two pronounce the name differently — Davis using two syllables and Midler using one. She enrolled in drama at the University of Hawaii at Manoa before leaving after three semesters, and appeared as an uncredited extra in the 1966 film Hawaii, playing a seasick passenger. She used earnings from that film to relocate to New York City in the summer of 1965.

Upon arriving in New York, Midler studied theatre at HB Studio under Uta Hagen. Her first professional stage work came in 1965 through Tom Eyen's off-off-Broadway productions Miss Nefertiti Regrets and Cinderella Revisited. She joined the Broadway company of Fiddler on the Roof in October 1966, initially playing the ensemble role of Rivka and understudying the eldest daughter Tzeitel. She assumed the Tzeitel role in February 1967 and held it until February 1970. Following Fiddler, she joined the original cast of Salvation in 1969. In the summer of 1970, she began performing at the Continental Baths, a gay bathhouse located in the basement of the Ansonia Hotel, where she built a devoted following. Her piano accompanist during that period was Barry Manilow, who later co-produced her debut album. In 1971, Midler starred in the first professional production of the Who's rock opera Tommy with the Seattle Opera, directed by Richard Pearlman, and made her first appearance on The Tonight Show during that run.

Midler's recording career launched in December 1972 with the Atlantic Records release of The Divine Miss M, co-produced by Manilow. The album reached the Billboard Top 10, achieved Platinum certification, and earned her the Grammy Award for Best New Artist. It produced three hit singles, including "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy," which became her first number-one Adult Contemporary hit. She received a Special Tony Award in 1974 for her contribution to Broadway, connected to her Clams on the Half Shell Revue at the Minskoff Theater. Her first television special, Ol' Red Hair Is Back, premiered in 1977 and won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Special – Comedy-Variety or Music. That same year she released her first live album, Live at Last.

Her film career began with The Rose in 1979, in which she played a drug-addicted rock star modeled after Janis Joplin. The role earned her the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture Comedy or Musical, along with nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actress, the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role, the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress, and the National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actress. She also won the Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for the film's title song and the Grammy Award for Record of the Year for "Wind Beneath My Wings." Midler went on to appear in a wide range of films, including Down and Out in Beverly Hills, Ruthless People, Outrageous Fortune, Big Business, Beaches, Stella, Hocus Pocus and its 2022 sequel, The First Wives Club, The Stepford Wives, Parental Guidance, and The Addams Family and its sequel. Her performances in For the Boys and the television film Gypsy each earned her additional Golden Globe Awards, and For the Boys brought a second Academy Award nomination. In total, Midler has received four Golden Globe Awards, three Grammy Awards, three Primetime Emmy Awards, two Tony Awards, and a Kennedy Center Honor, along with two Academy Award nominations and a BAFTA nomination. As a recording artist, she has released 14 studio albums and sold over 30 million records worldwide, with four Gold, three Platinum, and three Multiplatinum certifications from the RIAA.

On Broadway, Midler's credits include Fiddler on the Roof, Hello, Dolly!, Bette! Divine Madness, I'll Eat You Last: A Chat With Sue Mengers, and Short Talks on the Universe, among other productions. Her starring role in the 2017 Broadway revival of Hello, Dolly! — which began previews in March of that year and opened at the Shubert Theatre in April — marked her first leading role in a Broadway musical. The performance earned her the Tony Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical, adding to the Special Tony Award she had received in 1974. Between her Broadway engagements, Midler held a Las Vegas residency at Caesars Palace with Bette Midler: The Showgirl Must Go On from 2008 to 2010.