Liza Minnelli

she stole Desi Arnaz Jr from Patty Duke.

Details please, r1

Liza Minnelli is one of only a handful of people in the entertainment world who I truly believe would have made it without her parents' connections. The list is very small, but Liza would have done it.

r2 it was thought of at the time that Desi was the father of Patty's baby (Sean Astin) and both he and his mom Lucille Ball were not to thrilled with that. As it turned out he was not the father of Sean, her second husband was. After the scandal hit his mom gave give Desi an ultimatum and he left Patty and Liza was there to pick up the pieces.

Nope, too ugly.

She loves to marry gay men.

Thanks, r4. Was Lucy fond of Liza?

r7 the funny thing was that she was. Even though like Patty, Liza was also 5 years older than Desi.

Liza stole musician Rex Kramer from his wife.

She threw over Desi Arnaz for a two week fling with Peter Sellers.

Liza on drugs threw up in Fred Ebb's lap at his annual holiday party.

Liza was arrested at Studio 54 for having sex in the hallway. Her publicist, her manager got it thrown out.. and she didn't serve time. She had a show the next day.

She is fluent in French.

Her favorite candy is dark chocolate or Kit Kat bars.

She had a brief affair with the maintenance man in her apartment building.

When she was in THE RINK she kept her packets of coke in her costume.

Liza won the Oscar, the Emmy, the Tony and Grammy.

She was one of the youngest person to win the Tony.

She had a fire in her bedroom during the time she was in THE ACT. lit cigarette

What about her lesbian relationships?

didn't know she was fluent in French.

OP, if I may call you that. Pleashe buy my autobiography when it comesh out shoon. I'll shpill all the beansh on everything.

If I ever lose what remains of my mind, I hope to wander city streets in a hospital gown, smearing my shit on bannisters, whispering "Li - Za - MIH - Nel - ley" over and over again. It's such a fun name to pronounce.

Liza caught the curse. She'll never be... a nurse.

Liza and Mikhail Baryshnikov did it, according to Andy Warhol.

Son francais parle est vachement mauvais!

OK OP, I'll bite but I am going to be beat to a pulp for this.

I don't know if she'd have become a star if it wasn't for her parents. Not that she'd get a free pass, but I think it got her a foot in the door out of curiosity. She apparently was able to deliver.

I've seen her in concert from the 70's to 90's. Absolutely fantastic, thrilling. Movie work? Spotty at best. The voice changed in the late 80's early 90's and became darker, huskier. Still compelling at that point.

She has a theatrically which I like. But I think when she had encephalitis it really damaged her brain. That and the coke and the valium and booze and whatever else. And the three hip replacements, vocal chord surgery, knees, spine, feet and whatever original parts she still has left.

Now she caterwauls. She can still sing a few tunes that don't require croaking (and I write this as a Lizaloon.) But people still want her to belt out the standard and she can't do it. Apparently there is no one in her coterie who can convince her to dial it back.

That said, here's a link to a performance from the 80's which I think superb.

Thanks, r17. What did you think of her in New York, New York?

Why couldn't she make it work with Mark Gero?

hump

Liza Minnelli was a star from the time she stepped on a stage. She is extraordinarily talented. Singer, dancer, actress and overall entertainer. Of course she would have made it regardless of her lineage. She's a force of nature.

And one of the most charming thigs about Liza when she's doing an interview, she never says a bad word about anyone. She's amazingly gracious. Sure she's had her ups and downs, but Liza has always been scandal free. Liza is show business personified. There's no doubt she woud have been a huge success no matter what.

Lineage is one thing and being the daughter of Vincent Minelli and Judy Garland is impeccable lineage. You couldn't create a better showbiz offspring in a scientific lab.

Making it on your parents connections is another and though, of course, Liza was known showbiz offspring, the years of growing up on film sets and in the wings at legendary concerts infused her talents to no end. But she was dazzling in her own right. You don't win a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical at the age of 19 for nothing.

Watch Cabaret. Liza may not be 100% the singer her mother was but she married her mother's intensity as an actress with method-like acting chops and took it up a level. Watch how she goes head to head with DeNiro in New York, New York and often wins every scene they're in. Her character's love for him alone is the only thing that makes him likeable, otherwise DeNiro is completely charmless.

She also single handedly carried an entire Broadway show in The Act which otherwise had a decent score and great costumes by Halston. The rest was entirely her (and some classy choreography from Gower Champion).

Listen to the incredible Liza at Carnegie Hall CD set. She is mega talented in her own right as an actress, an interpreter of song, as a dancer (back in the day) and an incredible, winning personality. People love her because she's a survivor.

R17, plenty of stars have tried to thrust their offspring onto the American public without success. The young Liza Minelli enchanted audiences from the time she first appeared on her mother's tv show and in concert with her. She also appeared Off-Broadway in Best Foot Forward before forging her own creative alliance with Kander & Ebb. She connected with her own peer group in The Sterile Cuckoo receiving an Oscar nomination for her performance. She forged her own way.

Liza after Flora opened. I was under the impression that Judy did not attend the opening but went the next night.

Hoer concerts back in the day were great. No one could touch that talent.

Excellent actress when given something to work with. Like many of the divas though her personality can overpower weaker roles and she is a bit of a caricature now.

She's incredible in New York, New York. Unfortunately, the movie itself is incredibly meandering and too bleak to bear.

Her parents may have gotten her attention, but she retained it with her own talents, something that so many showbiz brats can't do. The one strength she had over Judy was that she could 'do' a lot more styles: outside of "Mr Monotony", Judy never really did coy or sexy that well, whilst Liza could.

[quote]hump

LOL!

I just saw the American Masters on Judy Garland and I wish she had lived long enough to see Liza win the Oscar. Such a nice consolation to see her daughter achieve what was denied her.

R28, do you think Judy would have been jealous or bitter about Liza winning the Oscar? I do recall Judy telling Liza never to sing Judy's songs. At the time I perceived it as Judy being territorial, but maybe she was offering her business savvy to her daughter advising her to create her own identity.

Despite all her emotional and drug problems,she seemed like a great mother,r29. I think she would have been proud to see Liza get the Oscar. Judy really wanted it for "A Star Is Born',but the picture was hacked up by the studio heads and many good Judy scenes cut out and that appears to be where the blames lies for the Oscar snub.

Liza's hardly fluent in French. Check out her live album from the Olympia and she sounds like a first year high school French student. She tries to sing "Liza with a Z" in french and hilarity ensues.

Liza could never had had success without the gays. She has little appeal for anyone else. Way too ugly and unattractive for a leading lady and she didn't have that bizarre attraction to the camera that Streisand has. Onstage, she has a desperate quality that every second begs for love and help.

[quote] Way too ugly and unattractive for a leading lady

Ahem!

Liza Minnelli, you're no Bette Davis.

Liza is great. If she were not the daughter of VM and JG her fame would be different, but she would definitely be a star on her own.

R31, actually you're wrong. When Minelli first appeared she had cross-generational, cross-gender appeal. You don't land on the cover of Newsweek because the gays like you, not back in 1972. For most of the '70s, people like Liza Minelli and Bob Fosse WERE showbiz.

And she was a leading lady from the time she appeared in The Sterile Cuckoo through Cabaret, Lucky Lady, New York, New York and Arthur. Not sure what you're smoking. The '70s were far more interesting times with unusual women like Streisand and Minelli were huge stars; during the upheaval and cultural clashes of the times they managed to straddle both old and new showbiz.

Cupcake R35, an elder gay should know it's "M-I-Double N, then E, Double L, I". I mean, it's not like there's a song about it or anything.

She was credible as a neurotic nut in "Cuckoo" and she was bearable in "Cabaret" but her other film work has been appalling for a so-called superstar. LL, NYNY A Matter of Time were box office disasters in partdue to her lack of leading lady appeal. It was almost joke casting to have her in "Arthur" but it worked because of the final scene where Dudley Moore kissed the horse rather than Liza.

Marisa Berenson also made the cover of "Newsweek." Oh, what standards.

I think Liza is incredale She is one great dancer and singer Hollywood shoves all the real talent away when the truly talented stars age This new crop of pitiful artists(sic) think they are going somewhere but where will they be in 5 yrs No talent doesnt last and you can only fool the public so long with people with no talent Liza has been around a long time Keep going Liza us fans who love you are still out here

I just saw that movie "New York, New York" last night and God, was she ever ugly! I don't remember her looking that bad before. The musical number for the theme song was dreadful, she was the walking corpse of her mother, and her voice was terrible to boot... I don't remember feeling this way years ago when her other films came out and I don't know why I missed New York, New York.

Her recent TV work on Arrested Development and the Law & Order franchise convinced me: she's still really got it, at least with respect to acting.

I love Liza, but worry about her.

Does anybody know why she speaks with such a slur? It has gotten worse as she's gotten older. Is it from illness or her drug past, or a speech impediment that she was born with, or from bad dental work?

[quote]Liza's hardly fluent in French. Check out her live album from the Olympia and she sounds like a first year high school French student. She tries to sing "Liza with a Z" in french and hilarity ensues

That was part of her act to do that.

Liza loved the chocolate mocha frosted cake that she had when she had a birthday celebration at 21.... her 60th.

Liza apprenticed in summer stock and played Luisa in THE FANTASTICKS opposite Elliot Gould, Babe in THE PAJAMA GAME, Lili in CARNIVAL and Muriel in TAKE ME ALONG.

Liza had a cannister of oxygen on one side of the stage and a handler with a lit cigarette on the other side of the stage when she was in VICTOR/VICTORIA. One matinee day, she left at half hour to go to her pharmacy. Following that, co star Tony Roberts refused to do any more performances until Julie Andrews returned.

Liza loves pepperoni pizza.

Liza paid off her mother's debts.

Liza had an affair with Burt Reynolds when they made LUCKY LADY.

During the time she briefly dated Ben Vereen, Liza smoked Virginia Slim cigs.

There was a posed black and white photograph taken of a shirtless Vereen cupping Liza's bare breasts.

When Liza did her summer concert tour in 1972, she was accompanied by her little dog Ocho.

Liza's concert was rained out one night during a week long engagement at the St. Louis Muny.

Liza's red outfit for her performance of "City Lights" for the Tony Awards was designed for that one time performance. In the show her costume for that number was white.

While filming LUCKY LADY, Liza was reading one of Jackie Collins novels.

[quote]During the time she briefly dated Ben Vereen

Ben Vereen is gay??

Her fling with Vereen was during her Liza at the Winter Garden engagement. He was her date along with her father opening night.

I had dinner with Sid Luft a couple of times in the late 1980s or early 1990s -- he loved to go to Spago with his twentysomething bimbo (whose name was Judy) and enjoyed holding court over lots of drinks.

Anyway, at one of the dinners someone brought up Liza and he said something to the effect that, eh, Liza's all right (he seemed to be referring both to her as a performer and as a stepdaughter).

"She was great in Cabaret," he said, "but how long can you play the same character? The real talent there is Lorna. She can sing, act, do it all, like her mother."

No one at the table expressed a dissenting opinion. Of course, Sid was paying the check.

Lisa dates gay men exclusively...

R46's exposition-filled post reads like a conversation out of The Love Machine.

I still think that Liza and Marisa Berenson had a little lesbian fling back in the early 70's. I know that they are friends. We will never know because Marisa is a lot more classier and wouldn't flaunt her private life in public.

Der plegma dat comes in der tubes, R49?

I get my drive from my mother and my dreamssh from my father!

"From the neck up I feel like Dorothy from the waist down, I feel like the Tin Man!"

"Chita?? Oh, she'shh the bessht! She's ter-riff!"

"Every song is a little story.. a little story."

"Broadway?? nah... Larry, I'm shhixty!!!"

I like to work with clay...

Judy said that Lorna was the one with all the talent. But Judy also knew that Liza was loaded with talent too. And Liza had the razzle dazzle to top off all that extraordinary talent. But Liza and Lorna had different ambitions, lives and priorities, which accounts for their different levels of fame. They don't make 'em like Liza anymore. She's one of a kind fabulous.

[quote]I still think that Liza and Marisa Berenson had a little lesbian fling back in the early 70's.

Marisa had a thing going with Ann Prentiss (the late sister of Paula Prentiss) so she could very well have gotten it on with Liza as well.

She is a gifted comedienne. "Hello Georgia . . . " What a great bit!

Liza was with Chita's daughter Lisa Mordente.

She was rumored to have had a fling with Carmen MacRae which I don't believe.

Lana Cantrell... possibility.

Bob Fosse during CABARET.

Affair with Gower Champion when he took over THE ACT from Scorsese who got her started on coke.. not the drink.

A few years ago, Liza was in a relationship with a female psychotherapist .. can you imagine??!

Didn't help Lorna.

But people really do forget that, past all the gltiz and scandal and parody she can be, Liza was a truly great actress. Start with "Sterile Cuckoo" and then go to "Cabaret". Skip ahead to "Arthur" where she still has her charm. I definitely passed Homo 101 when it comes to Liza.

I can't believe Judy said Lorna had all the talent because she shared the stage w/ Liza at the Palladium and you can see that she was impressed enough with Liza to bring her A game to the stage so as not to be upstaged. Lorna could never have done that.

What's Lorna's story? Are she and Liza close? Did she peruse a career in show business?

She did R60. She was a lead replacement in PROMISES, PROMISES on Broadway. Was in the GUYS AND DOLLS tour. Has played Mama Rose in GYPSY and recently played the Mary Wickes character in a tour of WHITE CHRISTMAS. Twice married, raised a family. Yes, Lorna had a drug/ ETOH history but she sobered up and stayed sober, something Liza has struggled with for decades. They have an on and off relationship but are close when it comes to caring for Joey. Liza doesn't like the way Lorna has been honest.. painfully honest about their mother in the press and in that book she wrote. Liza tends to look the other way and doesn't want to soil the image of her mother. John Fricke who has written many books about Garland is very close to Lorna. He cannot stand Minnelli who has refused to talk to him.

Forgot to add, Lorna has toured with a show where she sings her mother's songs. Liza hates that. She won't sing her songs although she did a snippet of some in her show Minnelli on Minnelli.

Liza and Lorna have always been very close despite some differences. They are the essence of "family sticks together."

Yeah, maybe Liza doesn't care for Lorna singing "Mama's" songs, and Lorna was none to pleased when Liza married that whacko homo, David Guest. But Liza and Lorna patch things up and love each other.

But remember, they're both in their 60s and have different lives and different show business careers. They're not going to have the same relationship as when they were 12-year old girls.

After reading your post I went to amazon to look up Lorna's books. Was shocked to read she had an affair and was in love with Barry Manilow. What's THAT story? I thought he was family.

[quote]Barry Manilow. What's THAT story? I thought he was family.

He is. Some women make mistakes or have no gaydar at all. What are you gonna do?

Liza was a creation of Fosse, not her mother. "Liza with a Z" was all him, although I thought her performance during the "Cabaret" medley was outstanding. There was very little else that couldn't have been done just as well by any of the other TV musical special performers like Lola Falana or Mitzi Gaynor. It's significant that all of her TV specials after "Liza with a Z" have ranged from meh to horrible. Remember her take on "Bad Girls" which became all about being a "Stah"?

Radio City is not meh or terrible

I far prefer Ute Lemper. Liza is a cozy campy drunk with a good voice, but not a great artist.

I first saw Liza fresh off of her triumph in "The Act" in a concert tour after the show closed. She was SENSATIONAL! She truly was still "Liza With a Z!" and the show was one of the more memorable evenings I have had in the theater. Her encore was a legato, then sing-along version of "Harvest Moon" with not a dry eye in the house. It was lovely. Sure, she's a shadow of her former self, but her kindness and life-long gentle nature has given her perhaps the deepest well of goodwill of any entertainer of our age. I love Liza.

Lorna may have the talent but she sure doesn't have the charisma that Liza has. Liza has "star quality" or whatever it is that makes you look at her and no one else. Maybe she learned this from her mother who was supposedly a great live performer. I saw her once about 7 years ago. She wasn't in the best of health (she had been in the hospital I think), or voice but boy did she put on a show. I can't put my finger on it but she kept me engaged and I'm not really that into her music. I saw Lorna's show too -- the one about Judy. I left early. She just doesn't have the "it" factor that Liza has.

[quote]When Liza did her summer concert tour in 1972, she was accompanied by her little dog Ocho.

Ocho was great on piano and even better on the marimba. Damn, that dog could move!!!

"Minnelli also approves of Lindsay Lohan playing her friend Liz Taylor in “Liz & Dick,” telling us of Lohan, “She’s lovely. She’s a good actress."

Liza 'n Lorna at NY Dance Alliance Gala last night.

HIT IT SHAMMY!

Not sure Liza would have been cast in 'Flora, The Red Menace' on Broadway if she did not have famous parents. (I saw the Boston tryout).

But she was a great concert performer until the early to mid 1990s. My guess is Liza got that 'it' gene from her mom.

No one knows about what happened to her marriage to Mark Gero?

I see John Fricke's name on DL from time to time. Who is John Fricke?

Fricke has written numerous books on Garland, co produced the American Masters bio that was on PBS, provided commentary on some of the Judy movies on DVD.

When Liza dines at Orso's, she usually gets the liver and onions. One of her favorites at that place.

Lorna does have talent, but the big problem with her is that she's always looked like a housewife from Great Neck, even when she was young. She never had the "it factor" that Liza inherited from Judy.

It's official. Lorna and Liza have morphed into Sid and Judy.

Liza was a creation of Fred Ebb. This was stated at Fred Ebb's memorial service.

She can sing and dance and above all else an irrepressible desire to please. She lays bare her soul..............

What R80 said.. every word she said on stage was Fred Ebb.

Everyone had to say that "Lorna has all of the talent" because no one could ever SEE Lorna's talent. Liza needed no sales push from her parents

Liza had a Merman like quality in that she did the big bombastic Broadway numbers well but put her into a contemporary setting and she was a relic. Not just "Single Ladies" but her "What's New Pussycat" at the Oscars rivaled Ann Reinking's "Against All Odds" for most cringe inducing.

Merman was way less needy of public affection than Minnelli. Merman often avoided signing autographs by seldom leaving by the stage door. To her credit, it is difficult to imagine Minnelli doing that. (Mary Martin was always friendly to fans as well, but saw it as part of being a star.)

I love Liza. She has that indefinable quality known as "it" and is truly a sweet woman.

I saw her in early July at the Montreal Jazz Festival. I was afraid her performance might not be very good due to all of her health problems and so on, but she was absolutely wonderful. The greatest moment was when she sang "What Makes a Man a Man." It was such a real and honest performance that I suddenly found tears in my eyes.

I'll never forget that moment, and I'll always love Liza.

I do recall being very impressed with young Lorna's voice on the Judy Garland Show and thinking she was quite the singer. Then I saw Grease 2 where she had zero solo numbers which would seems strange were she as talented as she was supposed to be. She also looked like a 48 year old mother of 4 in the film, she made Stockard Channing look like an infant in the original Grease by comparison.

R85, Minnelli did the same thing during "The Act". Maybe she changed during her later appearances when she started to crave the audiences love like heroin but lots of audiences were left stranded at the stage door of the Majestic Theater.

Unlike Minnelli, Merman never showed the need onstage for the love of the public. Quite the reverse, she had a "I'm great and if you don't like me, fuck you" attitude.

Liza turned on her TV on 9/11. She thought she was watching The Towering Inferno on Shhhinamaxsh.

The thing I like about Liza, to echo what others have posted, she seems like a truly kind person. You really don't hear about her throwing star fits, being a cunt on stage (I'm looking at you, Miss Ross) or being nasty to fans (I'm looking at you, Madonna).

r90

Isn't Ross always gooey and sentimental on stage?

Who the hell is Liza Minnelli?

Allan Carr claimed he gave Lorna a career by giving her roles in GREASE 2 and WHERE THE BOYS ARE.

When she turned down the Snow White role at the oscars, Carr berated her so badly over the phone that she was reduced to tears. Saying that no one would know her if it wasn't for him and that she was ungrateful and selfish.

r92

Lucille 2

Liza's a relic. A relic with some talent and a good network once upon a time, but a relic nonetheless. I suspect her biggest fans are on this board. I wish her well. She's harmless.

Why didn't her marriage to the hunky artist Mark Gero last? Wasn't he straight?

r96

Because she's destine to be Liza Danza!

Back to the original question:

While Liza certainly had talent, it's also doubtful that her lack of physical grace/beauty could have jump started her career. Think of Julie Budd, or someone along those lines...

Lorna wrote in her book that she hated Mark Gero. She said he was a user who didn't have any money of his own and sponged off of Liza and enabled her drug use.

r98

Did it jumpstart Ella Fitzgerald's or Celine Dion's or Barry Manilow's. Singers get more of a pass in that department than (leading) actors.

Liza's no Celine, Barry or Ella. Liza was/is stuck in the Broadway genre which doesn't sell records. It's significant that her only Gold Record came from her backup singing for Alice Cooper.

I'm 39 and I love Liza, of course I have taken film and theater classes and I appreciate movies made before 1985. She does seem like a wonderful person, problems and all. I bet she makes a fantastic dinner guest.

Liza only has one gold record? Geez! I guess not every bitch can be THE BIGGEST SELLING FEMALE ARTIST OF ALL TIME

She didn't get a gold record for Liza with a Z, a concert for television LP?

In an interview with the "Hollywood Kids" right after she did the Pet Shop Boys record, she said that she only had one gold record and that was from the Alice Cooper record. She said she always thought "Cabaret" and/or "Liza with a Z" went Gold but she never got a Gold Record for it.

She apparently has 3 golds and 1 UK silver. See link for details.

According to Liza, she doesn't have the records. Maybe they're next to the Halston rings she didn't want to sell on HSN.

Liza With A Z is a great album. I saw her in 1979 at Carnegie Hall and she gave a great concert. I don't like NY, NY--I think it's a very badly written movie--but I love Cabaret, which is brilliant.

1979! I wasn't even born yet!

"But you're HERE, Blanche (R109) You're here with all the old fucks. ehhhh haaaaaaaHAAAAAAAAAA!"

(that is if we are to believe you).

NY NY was on last night. I forgot how fantastic Liza was, and how annoying De Niros character was. Strange, strange movie.

....and, about 90 minutes too long.

Everybody was coked to the gills on NY NY.

All NYNY needed was a script, an editor and a director and it would have been just fine.

Liza has been PERFECT. Liza is a raw diamond, a true artist. No one like you Lisa, you have your own style and you gave much heart and soul in it.

Liza is sad and sweet and so far from what she was as a performer. Her voice certainly was never a recording voice and I am not surprised at the lack of gold records.

But what she had was the real thing, that (sh) "it", the electricity of one of the greatest live performers, with a rich and powerful voice, a definite persona and pretty sophisticated musical taste and style. She is about the best Actress while singing singer there is. Not just putting meaning into the lyrics, but portraying the whole subtext of a character in song. She could dance well enough to be one of the last of the triple threat entertainers. (Bernadette Peters, maybe)

Watch this performance of "The World Goes Round" from her in concert at her peak to get a better idea.

New York, New York is a pretentious misguided and very dull movie. Liza can act, but her look is just too distinctive and unusual to work in most parts or hairstyles, Ha. She is built for the stage, and in this clip even looks almost pretty IMO. I am not a superfan, but have seen her twice and was pretty blown away......the first time.

Yes underfifty, Liza has been a FABULOUS performer. She could blow someone away the way she expressed herself on the stage. Liza Minnelli has been magical and it's easy to get addictive to her when you listen to her songs and see her performances.

Judy Garland famously declined to attend the opening of Flora because she didn't want to take away from a night that should be all Liza's.

Gero allegedly beat Liza. Making it work would have been difficult.

Liza allegedly had a lengthy affair with Lana Cantrell.

Do you think that Liza ever got to kiss Elizabeth Taylor in the mouth? I know they were very good friends...

R116 thanks for posting that.

"The World Goes "Round" is my favorite Liza song -- and I think one of the best Kander & ebb tunes.

This was a wonderful thread.

If anyone doubts Minnelli's talent, watch "Liza With a Z". Who could even attempt to do something like that today?

And Minnelli was a knock-out in Cabaret. Not quite right for the role as originally written... but no matter....she was a sensation.

And her odd look and eccentric quality were very right for the late 60's-early 70's.

Not many know of her recordings before her role in Cabaret. Her album (Liza Minelli) from 1968 is actually quite interesting with a quirky selection of songs. No, she wasn't a great singer but the voice was right for the material.

Here's Liza on the Hollywood Palace in 1968 looking a LOT like Anne Hathaway:

When you evidence Liza perform on stage, you can guess that there are a million of bombs in her soul and a billion candles of love and desire burning, keeping her warm and hot there.

Mary!!

Mary? Mary who?

I was pissed in the 90s when she took over for Julie Andrews in Victor/Victoria. She couldn't even do 30 days sober, and I bought tickets. She didn't make it.

But I WAS there at Liza with a Z at the Winter Garden back in the 70s with the BF. Yep, she proved it there. She was probably high on something (sniff sniff) but she had it. Big time. I remember leaving the theater thinking I'd just seen something extraordinary. Amazing dancing, singing, and stage patter. It's sad she still has trouble with sobriety. But yeah, she's a talent. Not as big as her mother, but close.

Her songs are far better than her mother's and she sparkled more on stage than Judy did.

A 'gentleman friend' took us by limousine to see her perform somewhere in Orange County in 1987 - she had all of about about 3 pieces in the orchestra.

As we sat and watched and listened the one thing that went through our head: We were sure glad we did not pay for the tickets to this.

I can't think of anyone, not even her mother that can sell a song like Liza. When she sings and dances, bow down. The source of everything she does is stage craft at it's best.

R128 exactly!

I've recently learned Liza is part Native American through her father's side. Native American with Irish. Think about it. Becoming sober is next to an impossible feat with this genetic background. Go easy.

Assuming the Liza Minnelli with no celeb lineage would have been as (or comparably) educated as a dancer, singer and actress and as talented as the real Liza Minnelli, I have no doubt she would have impressed the likes of Hal Prince, Bob Fosse, Kander and Ebb, Martin Scorsese and certainly could have been as big a star as she became.

Of course, it's impossible to know for sure as, in fact, Liza Minnelli is Liza Minnelli the daughter of Vincente Minnelli and Judy Garland and that is a huge part of whom she is, her genes and her opportunities (to learn and to hone her craft - and she worked very, very hard when she was young - as well as to get work) and has defined not only her early fame but her personality, character, cache and exposure to the world of theater, concerts and movies.

I wonder what kind performer she would be had her mother never been. She could have done any job on Broadway, act, sing and dance. Had we never known her mother and the same star makers gotten hold of her, what then? Kanter and Ebb, Fossee etc.

[quote]But I WAS there at Liza with a Z at the Winter Garden back in the 70s with the BF. Yep, she proved it there. She was probably high on something (sniff sniff) but she had it. Big time. I remember leaving the theater thinking I'd just seen something extraordinary. Amazing dancing, singing, and stage patter. It's sad she still has trouble with sobriety. But yeah, she's a talent. Not as big as her mother, but close.

same with me. Saw her at the St. Louis Muny and this was the same year as Liza with a Z. Lots of the same material that I saw a few months later when the TV concert was broadcast in September. Have seen her several times in concert and on Broadway in THE ACT and THE RINK. No one could touch her. The last concert I saw was MINNELLI ON MINNELLI which was not her usual high energy performance. She was quite heavy back then and coughing up a storm. However, she still had the audience in the palm of her hand.

Am I the only one who disliked Liza and the entire movie of Cabaret???

I liked Minnelli in the numbers, but not otherwise. But she was ill-served by the script as well. I hate that they "explain" the character by introducing her "unavailable" father.

"Am I the only one who disliked Liza and the entire movie of Cabaret???"

No. The world is filled with people of limited taste and intelligence.

Cabaret has a 97% rating at Rotten Tomatoes based on 32 critics reviews.

The quotes below are from the original Roger Greenspun review in the NYTimes Feb.1972:

"As for Miss Minnelli, she is sometimes wrong in the details of her role, but so magnificently right for the film as a whole that I should prefer not to imagine it without her.

With her expressive face and her wonderful (and wonderfully costumed) body she moves and sings with a strength, warmth, intelligence, and sensitivity to nuance that virtually transfixes the screen."

I forgot this.... also from the same review:

"And when at certain moments that theater is occupied only by Liza Minnelli, working in a space defined only by her gestures and a few colored lights, it becomes by the simplest means an evocation of both the power and fragility of movie performance so beautiful that I can think of nothing to do but give thanks."

LIZAAAAAAAAA LIZAAAAA YOU ARE FANTASTIC!!!!!!

WE LOVE YOU LIZAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!

I have only positive things to write for the artist Liza Minnelli. She has left me breathless numerous times. How could she? It really hits me. I'm so glad that Liza is still among us and still has the urge to sing. Liza, restless Liza!

R134- I was disappointed with the changes in the film. I loved the original stage production and missed the cut songs and the secondary characters. I know the movie was a critical hit and I will buy the blu ray but it wasn't Cabaret... just my opinion of course.

Some thoughts from Dame Streep.

No, because she gets her drive from her mother but her dreams from her father!

Liza Minnellii 'You Fascinate Me So'

Liza...'Close Your Eyes'

Minnelli...'Moments Like These'

CONFESSIONS~

She rocks all the way.

Liza is so cute. She even nowadays has the mood and the need to sing. Isn't she sweet?

Amazing that people pay to see that, r146.

Lol Mrs Patrick! You don't expect from a person who is 66 years old to be as they were in their prime time. People pay to see Liza because she has a quality in her songs and because they respect her and love her. I insist she is very sweet, she still has the same hair after all these years and she still tries to please her fans. She is a legend.

R146 re: that video

It's as if we're watching a truck driver who impersonates Liza at a local bar on the weekends.

Guys, guys! You miss my point!

[quote]Forgot to add, Lorna has toured with a show where she sings her mother's songs.

"Hello, Elgin!" - Songs My Mother Taught My Sister While I Was In The Room.

Anybody knows If Liza has a good relationship with her younger sister?

r152

Have you just discovered Liza Minnelli?

There's a doc with both of them on youtube. Get those fingers a-typin'.

Loooooooooool R153. As an artist Liza is well known to me but i don't know a lot about her personal life. I know about her marriages and about some incidents that are referring to her but i don't know anything about her relationship with her half-sister. Anyway, thanks, i'll go on youtube if there is already a doc about that as you said. I'll find it out!

Liza and Lorna have had an off and on relationship through the years. I don't know if they're on now. Two fathers, Vincente Minelli and Sid Luft. Minelli, and Garland's father were both, I understand, gay or bi, and Liza's first husband was gay. Judy put Peter Allen and Liza together. Liza was wildly promiscuous, esp. after she became a star in Cabaret, so it was the perfect arrangement for both of them.

Do you believe that Liza's best performance was for 'Cabaret'?

Have you seen her in another movie being so SPLENDID?

Unfortunately no.

And Cabaret was 40 long, long years ago. It might as well be Gone with the Wind.

Yes, that's what i though. Cabaret is probably the best performance she gave as an actress. Judy Garland was a far better and more capable actress than Liza. However, i strongly believe that Liza was superior on stage than her mother. Liza gave incredibly magical and heartfelt performances on stage. Her performances are still timeless. Judy's songs haven't the power and the tension that characterize Liza's numbers. Liza was a brilliant perfomer on stage and Judy one of the most brilliant actresses that have ever graced the silver screen.

*thought

[quote] Judy's songs haven't the power and the tension that characterize Liza's numbers.

B. S.

"Tell me that you love me Junie Moon" Was that a Liza movie?

R158 If you think that "Judy's songs haven't the power and the tension that characterize Liza's numbers" then you really know nothing about the Great American Songbook. You know nothing of Miss Garlands work. And excuse me for saying it but: you have no taste.

Miss Garland introduced to the world "Over the Rainbow", "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" and "The Man that Got Away" (among others) .

"Cabaret" and "NY,NY" are "Chopsticks" compared to them.

R162 Probably you really haven't given yourself the opportunity to listen to Liza's DIVINE and CLASSIC album 'Liza Minnelli:The Complete Capitol Collection', or you didn't give yourself the pleasure to get thrilled by Liza in her dynamic cooperation with Pet Shop Boys 'Results'.

Liza has been a MAGNIFICENT SHOW WOMAN AND ARTIST. Judy was a brilliant actress,a better actress than Lisa, but her songs remained classic due to her brilliant presence in movies. Her voice maybe was better than her daughter's but Lisa was more emotional and she moves me more in her songs. Judy moves me more in her movies.

Re: Liza meets the Pet Shop Boys.

Nothing is sadder than a once sensational performer... no longer young.... trying to stay "relevant".

(And note how Sondheim's brilliant lyrics are cheapened and dissolve into mush.)

Liza was 43 old when 'Results' got released. I found her awesome, impressive and the opposite of cheap in this album as well. She gave powerful performances of the Pet Shop Boys songs, she could chill you with her fire and passion.

I wonder if you really bothered to listen to 'Results' R164.

R163 It'sh.....Lizsha with a Zshee not Lissha with an Sh 'caushe Lisha with an Sh goes Shshsh not Zhzhzh. It'sh Zshee inshtead of Sh, Li inshtead of Lee, it'sh shimple ash can be shee Lizsha!

Lizaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

Yes.

Kisses to Lizsha, too.

r163

It doesn't get more emotional than Garland. You may not like her, but recognise.

R168! Are you crazy? I ADORE JUDY GARLAND. I think she is one of the best actresses of all time. She was unique! Not many actors and actresses had her brilliance, her acting capabilities were limitless.

I think i wrote where i find Liza more touching.

[quote] Her voice maybe was better than her daughter's but Lisa was more emotional

For your perusal, r169

R170, you are such a child!

:)

I know Liza casually and have worked with her three times.

As evidenced by many posters on this thread, it's really and truly a thing that people call her "Lisa" to her face. It's the strangest thing and happens daily. When I finally had the opportunity to introduce my Mom to Liza, the woman who raised me on a strict diet of all things Minnelli and Garland gushed: "Oh my goodness, Lisa, I've been a fan for about 40 years!"

The Gero marriage was not a good one, he was a user. She married Gest bc he swooped in on her during her recovery from encephalitis and preyed on her as she didn't have all her faculties back yet. Creepy, gay, horrible man who soaked her financially...but was also able to keep her sober and fit for an extended period of time.

To the poster who said she never sings her mother's songs: She has publicly performed Man That Got Away, The Trolley Song, parts of Over the Rainbow, and Judy's 8 minute Palace Medley at various points over her career.

She is fluent in french, which proved useful. She had a stroke people don't know about, and found that when she was learning to speak again again, her english was muddled but her french was fine. Doing her therapy in french helped get back her normal speech.

Something that most people don't know (and affects her struggle with sobriety): she has EXCRUCIATING pain on a daily basis and wears a backbrace and leg brace under most of her costumes or streetwear. On a pain scale of 1 to 10, it's never less than 8. When she appears in public or onstage and everyone says she's drunk, it's not red wine (her former drink of choice)....it's that she got herself whacked out on painkillers in order to leave the house.

She's kind, sweet, and generous....even for the nobodies in the company, she puts herself time and again. This makes her a target for opportunistic leeches.

R172, thank you for taking the time to write all these kind words and interesting info about Liza.

That was nice!

"he has EXCRUCIATING pain on a daily basis and wears a backbrace and leg brace under most of her costumes or streetwear."

Why? Unless she has recently broken vertebrae (it heals, you know), there's no use for a back or leg brace.

Scoliosis for the back, and it's always in use Not sure about the leg, and that brace rotates with knee, ankle and wrist braces.

Are you Karen Ziemba, r173?

Liza's recorded performances at the Olympia completely debunk the concept that Liza is fluent in French. She may be fluent in Clay but not French.

what year was the Olympia? What year is it now?

She's fluent, doll.

R172- John Kander once told me that he has never known her to say an unkind remark about anyone.

Olympia was 1969.

No matter what, make sure you are quite clear that it's Liza with a Z, not Lisa with an S.

I hear there has been quite the mixup over that with some very ugly results.

Liza isn't fluid in English, let alone French. She admits to being an alcoholic; perhaps the slurring is due to a booze-painkiller combo.

R162, credit should go to the composers of those songs way before the artist who introduced them, imho.

R179, so?

Meaning she is a kind person R182

Liza is great. PERIOD!

"To the poster who said she never sings her mother's songs: She has publicly performed Man That Got Away, The Trolley Song, parts of Over the Rainbow, and Judy's 8 minute Palace Medley at various points over her career."

She also sang a warm and wonderful rendition of HAVE YOURSELF A MERRY LITTLE CHRISTMAS as the finale of the Christmas Eve afternoon performance of the last time she played the Palace, a few years ago.

It makes me very happy to read most of the comments in this thread about Liza are positive and praising. I was afraid that she would be denigrated and ridiculed. Thank you all for that. She is a hard-working major talent who has given us much pleasure over the years. A sincere and honest performer who deserves our respect and gratitude.

R162, do try and keep up. the slurring became noticably bad after the encephalitis and the stroke.

when it comes to alcohol, it surprise many of you how on the wagon she is. It's the painkillers that set her off.

I got that R183. I don't understand why I should care. Paying top dollar to see a slurring lush because they're a kind person???

R188, i wish you could shut your trap. If only!

LIZA!

Hey OP: Stupid post. And a lie. Hit the google and shut up.

R191, why are you here?

Liza is magnificent. She stands out! I wonder how people cannot like Liza Minnelli and write negative comments about that sweetheart and excellent artist, it really puzzles me.

YES!

LIZA YOU HAVE BEEN A GODDESS ON STAGE

PERFECT

UNIQUE

MAGICAL

MOVING

SENSITIVE

SWEET

POWERFUL

DIVINE

R187 thank you for sharing your insights. Seeing the candid side of her, do you think she's doing alright? I sure hope she has a loving partner or someone to lean on. It's certain that no one in her PR team cares about her and her reputation enough...

She definitely had the talent. Her voice is not as good as her mother's, but it's still good. She can act, sing, dance. I'm not a huge fan, but she definitely won me over for her great work on Arrested Development.

A few years ago she was fucking the maintenance man in her building. These days, it's Tony Danza although he may be there to keep her from drinking out in public..maybe not a sexual thing anymore?

Doesn't everyone know that Liza is a lesbian?

It doesn't matter with whom Liza sleeps. Whether that is a man or a woman, or whether is no one is the same for me.

Liza gave us great satisfaction with her songs, she moved us all the way with her warmth and passion. That is more than enough.

We love and respect Liza.

yes, R199.. she had a long term relationship with a female therapist which ended several years ago..

R196 (and everyone else, I guess!) It's not so much a matter of "is she ok" as it is "is she getting through the day".

There's a fair amount of her life that isn't public knowledge and it's heavy stuff that weighs down on her. She's never been ok emotionally and she's long not been ok physically. The NY Landmark awards ceremony video is a good example: she can show up sober and in blinding pain or she can take her painkillers and be a sloppy disaster.

It's hilarious to read here that people think she was dating a NY doctor recently or Tony Danza....she is a physical wreck. The woman can't manage a teacup or handle a stepping over a curb unassisted and her people are on hand as much to help her walk down the street as they are for hair and makeup. She's also wise enough to see that her days of romancing, sex and dating are far behind her. She's got some fabulous stories though, literally the most handsome royalty and celebrities have been after her.

What DOES give her happiness and joy at this point in her life is performing for her audience. It might sound like a cliche, but it's in her blood...doesn't matter how bad she sounds or feels, the stage is what keeps her going. I've worked with a few celebrities, but by far Liza is the one who most appreciates her fans. More than any man possible, that is the love that sustains her: hearing "I love you Liza" when she's picking up her starbucks, or the sound of applause when the curtain goes up.

It sounds sad, but it's not...she's not "ok", but she's happy in her way. Every day is a painful struggle for her, holidays are particularly hard, but she's doing what she loves to the best of her current ability and wouldn't change that for anything. Retiring and taking it easy is not an option for her. The day she stops performing is the day she dies.

Once more for momma:

Shilver bellsh

Shilver bellsh

Ish Chrishmash time in the shitty

Wow, aren't you clever and original R203!

bump for Liza. She had two hip replacements, a knee replacement so she should be pain free, right? Where does all this pain she lives with every day come from? Is she ill? Arthritis? Something crippling and painful?

R202, are you Tony Danza?

LIZAAAAAAAAAA!

FABULOUS LIZA MINNELLI!!!!!!!!!!!!

Devasating!

she usually ends up in the hospital or rehab during the holidays.

R209 not funny.

Liza with an "S" goes schna-zaaa

Does Liza still smoke 4 packs of cigarettes a day?

yes R212

Come on! Is that true?

R205, I was wondering that too - what is the source of the pain and why is it chronic?

I know about the hip and knee replacements but typically those people (I know several ex-B'way chorus dancers who have had them) are able to get down the street and go through everyday life without pain, if not do their full out Fosse or Bennett anymore.

My main wish for Liza would be that she's happy and not in pain. The other wish I have is that showbiz would take her seriously again so she didn't have to self produce and didn't have to troupe and tour, but could settle into something easy like a talk show or a TV series taping in NYC that she didn't have to carry.

I would love her to produce "The Minelli Years". She could be interviewed, record her stories, share her wisdom/lessons learned, etc. She's historical. I'd eat it up - stories of her childhood, breaking out in NYC, sex, love, marriage, relationships, political views, money, fame, friendships, family, whatever shed like to talk about. Maybe she could have her own YouTube channel.

That'll never happen, r216, because Liza lies about everything. She cannot/will not deal with the truth. Everything's a story, like she's mamma on the Jack Paar show in 1962.

What R217 said. She'd never tell the truth.

R217 Why you call Liza a liar? That is nasty and i bet you have no arguments to support that, have you?

r219

She says virtually everything's "terrific!".

PROVED!

R220 you are like a distorting mirror, i didn't say that. You overdo it guys with your comments and then you twist other people's words. How can you keep on with this attitude? Gee!

Liza and nobody is perfect but that doesn't make her a compulsive liar either!

It's not that Liza is a liar (even though she lies a lot).

People buy into public persona and what she says in inteviews and on stage too often as truth. She's had a very difficult life away from public view from the day she was born, and as we all do has found a way to function on a daily basis without breaking down. One thing I will say is that she is keenly aware of when she fucks up, and is not the delusional crazy person many make her out to be.

She lies as self preservation, not to be mean or because she's pathological.

R221, you're very naive. Liza is in denial in public and private, and cannot deal with reality. She lies because she describes everything like she's reciting a press release.

R223, you are a slanderer. Period.

That's why everybody in show biz is so BORING today.

We insist on the "truth" so as to not offend our delicate sensibilities.

Anyway, there's a great shot of LIZA!!! on the cover of this week's Frontiers Magazine in L.A.

[quote] We insist on the "truth" so as to not offend our delicate sensibilities.

Yes, because Liza saying everything's "terrific" offends people's delicate sensibilities...

R224, you're about 14 years old, correct?

we are all hypocrites.

Americans have killed over 100,000 INNOCENT people in the last 12 years, at least half of them children. With our tax dollars, with the approval of our President, and our Congress.

Liza has no career and suddenly people are weepy.

Get over yourselves. We are all killers, to some degree.

r228

People being can't be weepy about both?

And Liza will always have a career as long as there's clay in the world!

LIZA HAS FANS, TRUE FANS!

LIZAAAAAAAAAAAAAA YOU ROCKED MY WORLD

THE WAY YOU PERFORM LIZA, YOU ARE THE REAL THING

THE WAY YOU PERFORM LIZA, YOU ARE THE REAL THING

Best! Singer!! Evah!!!!! I worship her like a goddess. There will never be another. I have every song she ever recorded on my I-Pod. No other singer captures the emotions, pulse and feeling of the nation. She is national treasure and will be iconic 1,000 years from now. The only better singer in history was her momma, Judy.

Has an interviewer ever asked her on camera, "Are you sober right now?" or "When was the last time you used?"

R235 yes, I remember her being asked how long she's been sober, and she told the interviewer that it's her business

Is'nt ,m,

I'm not sure about Liza NOT speaking French. Wasn't her Dad like half French Canadian and Iroquois? He grew up speaking French, I thought.

Oh R235, don't be so silly! She's not applying for a counselor position at a rehab! She's not a reality tart or over sharing celeb trying to sell us on her way of living.

Liza has been at numerous events in NYC over the last few months sloppy drunk. Sad.

If Liza did not have Judy as a mother she would never have learned to sing as she does. If she did not sing as she does she would not have gotten the breaks (i.e., she was prepared for jobs at an early age) she did. Having Vincent for a father certainly did not hurt either.

R240, and you're not sad?

Darwin Porter's bios on celebs are usually made up fiction. I have a feeling that if he wrote a book about Liza every word would be true. That woman will never tell the real stories about her life, her numerous affairs, the drug and alcohol addiction.

[quote]And her odd look and eccentric quality were very right for the late 60's-early 70's.

Very good point. It also helped her appear a little more current, given her material and a style that had pretty much been completely eclipsed by rock and roll in terms of popularity.

R238, Vincente Minnelli grew up speaking English. He had French Canadian, Sicilian, Colonial American, and possibly Native American (most likely Odawa or Ojibwe) ancestry.

Can you believe that in the site Gay or Straight Liza Minnelli was voted only 64% gay. Are we serious now?

Gaydar my ass.

I also googled some other names and i don't think that this gaydar works properly. I think that straight people or managers of the stars block the truth....from our eyes.

Here is the notorious site

she's as straight as my hair

Miss Ross how is your hair?

:P

Liza is one of the greats. Her talents were spell-binding when she was young. No one else could match her in "Cabaret," a performance for the ages.

It is spooky how similar she was to her mother. She would have been big with or without her parents.

That Gay or Straight web site is ridiculous.

Liza is straight. Why would you want her to be rated gay? That's stupid.

Is she still running with the French guy or is that over?

bisexual. Had an affair wuth Chita Rivera's daughter and with a prominent New York psychotherapist.

I think Liza would have only been known as a Broadway musical actress had she not had famous parents.

R251 Excuse me, but Liza is not as straight as a straight line...

You wear glasses on purpose?

The greatetht performer of all-time. I worthip the ground thee walkth on.

Liza Minnelli most certainly did not EVER have an affair with Lisa Mordente. Lisa is straight and was married to actor Donnie Kehr.

The time that they were close, she was helping Liza out with her sobriety, at request of her Mom (Chita feels very maternal towards Liza, and has tried desperately to help her keep it together over the years). As for Liza, you queens don't know what you're talking about. Liza is a daddy's girl, she likes strong, masculine MEN, darker virile men (Geraldo Rivera, Mark Gero, Mohammed Soumaya, Ben Vereen). There is no ambiguity in her tastes. And yes, I know them both.

I also know that because of Liza's physical conditions (chronic pain, scoliosis, osteo-arthritis, etc) mean she hasn't been a sexual being in years. I've been in a rehearsal studio with her as recently as last year (and a social setting as recently as two months ago) and sex is the last thing on her mind.

Liza had an affair with kd lang before lang came out of the closet.

R258, is it a fact or just a joke?

Are there any stories about Liza being mean or nasty to her underlings? In spite of her flaws I always get the impression that she's a rather sweet, if clueless, woman. I'm sure she has quite a temper but I can't imagine her being cruel or a diva for the sake of being one.

Anyone?

Next?

I'll tell you what is next

LIZA WE LOVE YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

STAR LADY!

R259

Fact. During the time, Liza and kd lang were out together in NYC cabaret clubs as a couple. It was before kd lang was officially out. I watched the two of them fooling around in a booth at the sadly defunct cabaret club, Eighty-Eights. That they were a couple was generally known and accepted within this particular community.

Ok R263!

Noted.

That seems kind of cruel if Judy actually also said that crap about Lorna being "the talented one." It's the kind of thing that messes people up for life. Not to mention it's also complete poppycock in this case.

Lorna has the better vocal instrument but has no connection to her emotions. And, in later years she is singing flat with a Bert Lahr vibrato.

I think Liza is more talented than her mom was so yes.

R257 here.

I'm sorry, R258 and R263, you are lying. Stop making things up, bcause those of who actually what we're talking about will call you out. Why are you making up things?

R260, there are none. She actually goes out of her way to do nice things for underlings. She called the Minnelli on Minnelli chorus boys' moms for mother's day. She keep in touch with everyone she's worked with ever, and they are always welcome backstage wherever she goes. She made sure some of her diehard fans got to join the opening festivities at tavern on the green for Liza's Back. She takes smoke breaks with the crew guys. No-one who's ever worked with her has a bad word to say about her as a person, and that includes me. I watched Madonna make someone cry once just because she felt like it. Compare that to Liza, who will call a break and go a for a walk with someone with her arm around them if they are feeling tense or unsure.

Yeh, she makes a heck of a lot of bad choices....many addicts do. But she herself is great :)

Liza is bi at the very least. Some of you queens are so fucking ignorant as well as homophobic.

Yes some gay men have blinders. They can't otherwise...dunno why, i don't want to think about it anymore.

r267

Have you got into Liza's stash?

I saw her in Liza with a Z at the Winter Garden and I have to say after all these years I've never seen such an electrifying experience on the stage. She was obviously trained by homosexuals.

L*I*Z*A is a S*T*A*R!

Great interview with her from last year.

I hope her and Gaga do a duet or perform together.

Liza never gives a good interview. Everything is "terrific" blah blah blah

Why, because she doesn't say shit about people? Gimme a break, bitter bitch at R274.

I never knew she knew Laura Nyro, for instance. Also, I think the Aznavour show that he himself recently announced that he's written for her will be a great theatrical return for Liza. She speaks very highly of their friendship and onstage rapport in that interview.

r275

No, because she never says anything interesting about anyone.

Well said R268, well said.

Liza's the big exception to the rule. How many great performers can you think of who had a son or daughter grow up to be great performers themselves? Like her mother, Liza was a triple threat...movies, the stage, singing. So many of the gay men she adored are gone now. But I'll never understand the whole David Gest thing.

Well, in the interview I just posed she says interesting things she's never said before about Laura Nyro and Charles Aznavour, both international musical icons of the highest order.

So, I guess you're just totally wrong and a fool, R274/R276.

Thanks for adding so much to the thread.

Why does Babs hate Liza? Is it jealousy? Envy?

I've read the interview, long before you posted it. And I stand by my opinion.

Being a cheerleader does not necessarily mean you're "adding to the thread".

R276 I agree with you. Perhaps she's given some interesting interviews but I haven't seen them. I assumed that she didn't remember very much because of the booze/pills.

Right, R274, so you are not a cheerleader, not adding to the thread and doing nothing more than stating some stupid opinion with no substance.

Got it.

And, look, you have company @ R281! Turds usually come in twos or threes, after all.

Oh, and R279? Liza did the opening number at the Barbra Streisand Lincoln Center tribute in April.

Lisa R282 Honey is it really that serious. I love Liza but that doesn't mean I find her interviews to be particularly interesting. However, based upon the fabulous life she's led and all of the people she's known; I'm probably setting the bar pretty high. Anyway, Lisa dear I'm a little concerned about you. You seemed to be having a little melt down. You might need to get back on your medication.

Sure, R283, that, or I have a low tolerance for idiocy. Thanks for another great contribution.

At least this was once a great thread...

Lisa your "low tolerance for idiocy" certainly must have you at odds with yourself. You poor poor dear.

Only at odds with dumb cunts like you, R285.

Gotta have the last word, huh? Poor, poor (note the comma) dear, indeed.

R166 lol, but Results is a good album and TIMS a good cover.

She's always seemed very likable on TV. However, my parents bought tickets to a concert she was in during the mid-80s and the price was refunded - Liza was "unwell" and had to stop singing after a few songs.

Someone get Lisa's doctor on the phone stat. She's off her meds and melting all the way down again. It's time for another hospital stay. Poor Poor Poor (no comma)dear.

R168 There is one more emotional, Edith Piaf.

What type of meds is Liza taking these days to control her mood swings?

Bump.

Did Liza Minnelli ever snorted cocaine?

What R268 said. I know John Kander. He's a Kansas City native. He once told me that personally, he never heard Liza say anything unkind about anyone. And I'll even put my name out there.

;)

[quote]I've been in a rehearsal studio with her as recently as last year (and a social setting as recently as two months ago) and sex is the last thing on her mind.

I knew it. Liza is just pining away for me.

You wish, David.

Lizaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

I LOVE YOU!

Liza loves the ladies

Good, cause i'm a lady!

I remember from Geraldo's book, Liza wouldn't suck his cock.

But that's understandable. Neither would I.

How does someone's voice decay so much? I don't expect her to sound the way she did in 1975, but still....

Could she have some sort of voice training to help her regain at least some of what she's lost?

Smoking, R301.

R301- smoking, years of cocaine, years of prescription drug abuse, alcohol, that brain desease that almost took her out, possible stroke and rumored (only a rumor here folks) a stroke.

Lack of singing technique. I don't think I've ever heard Liza belt, only shout.

And when she died, the neighbors came to snicker.....

She is amazing

OP to answer the question, nope not at all. She's not talented enough and not pretty so without her famous lineage, she probably wouldn't have been very successful.

With that face, nobody would know who she was without "Pills," her mom.

LIZA IS A DE-LOVELY ARTIST. SHE GIVES ME CHILLS. LIZAAAAAAAA, GODDESS!

she's not "pretty", but she's fucking glamorous. No-one but no-one can turn out an entrance or photo-shoot like her. Men like Fosse, Scorcese, Ben Vereen, Gene Simmons, Geraldo Rivera, Mikhail Baryshnikov are amongst her lovers.

I love her so. What a great performer. I feel like shit right now, but listening to Liza's songs, it's so liberating and comforting. She is incredible. She makes me feel always very good in a deep way with her performances. As an artist, she is more than words can say. She goes all the way.

Thanks God, there was Lisa for a long long long time. I hope she is well, i need her to be well, there are not many great artists left with us today. SHE IS HUGE!

*Liza with a Z!

Sorry, Folks! Liza Minnelli Is Not, and Never Will Be, on Twitter ·

She's a registered Republican. She tells people she's Episcopalian but she's really a Catholic.

Liza doesn't need social media anyway. It is not her style.

I think Las Vegas should build a show around Liza like they have for the Beatles and Michael Jackson. A celebration of her musical performances. I think it would do well!?😉

It would be nice, r316.

Please R316, no one outside of theater queens even knows who the bitch is. No hit records aren't a formula for a big Cirque show.

No-one under the age of 40 would know who she is were it not for Arrested Development.

Jack Paar, who hosted The Tonite Show before Carson, put her on as a singing act under an exotic Roma name and she rocked the house! It was only after a few appearances, I believe, that he revealed her true identity to the audience. She is a force of nature, just like mum was. Mum was Batman, she was Robin. But what a wonderful superhero!

When I went to see Book of Mormon early in the run Liza was a row ahead of me. It was long before the show became the tourist trap it is now, and it was funny to watch everyone try to act all nonchalant around her. What struck me was how much she looks like her mother in person. I don't notice it as much when I see her on the screen, but when I looked at her eyes I could completely see Judy. I've been around quite a few celebs in my day, but I have to say I found encountering her to be pretty exciting.

She isn't that talent her mother was (but then, who is?) but I think she has shares something that is unique to her and her mother. That ability to have that show biz razzle dazzle sheen, but also relate directly to the person who is listening to the song. You get that idea that they both know your heartbreaks, your joys, and your pain. And also the slow build, a la Rock-a-Bye-Your-Baby to a thrilling climax. THAT is a trick Liza learned from Judy, and no one does it better.

I was a kid when that whole Lucy/ Desi/Liza/Patty thing played out, mostly on the covers of what we then called movie magazines. I thought it was pretty sexy, wondered what Desi had that enchanted these older women.

I do think Liza is that rare talent who is completely unique, more than holds her own compared to her parents. And when you consider who her parents were, it’s even more astounding.

She's damn good. We have no one Ike her today. No Crosby, Como, Jolson, Garland, Tucker, King Cole.......So enjoy Liza while you still can, cause when she goes, that's the end of an era, again.

[quote] Liza has always been scandal free.

Remember when Liza had the fling with Peter Sellers?

And then when she married the Tin Man’s son - everyone was like awwwww, so Hollywood!

who is she

whats she done??

Liza is one of very, VERY few children of celebs who would've made it on her own. Most of them would never have gotten past a casting office, but Liza would've been a star no matter what. Offhand, the only two others who come to mind are Michael Douglas and Jane Fonda.

It's hard to know. She had the talent and the drive, but she has always been homely. I guess Streisand made it at the same time... but there aren't many women from that era who could have made it without looks.

There's no way to definitely answer OP's question. Too many variables at work.

I think her looks would've been a huge obstacle. I think the fact that she was the daughter of two famous, talented people got her into many rooms and many auditions early on. Once people saw what she could do, she was in.

It would've been a huge challenge for someone who looks like her to get an agent, and get auditions in the early '60s and mid '60s. Barbra Streisand did it because she had drive, and the second she opened her mouth, there was something special there. I think Liza would've had to have been very driven, thick skinned, and persistent to have any kind of show biz career without being the daughter of Judy Garland.

No knock on her talent. In her day, she was fucking fantastic.

r328, I'll have you know that, had I not been molested, I would have made Liza look like .... I don't know.... Lorna Luft!

Georgia, Georgia on my mind...

While I think she had the talent to be a star I don't think she ever would have gotten her foot in the door if not for being the child of JG and VM. Her looks were too unusual and her singing too while good for B'way would not have struck with young people in the 1960s. I think, in the beginning producers and such saw her out of curiosity and the public too but only then were blown away by her talent.

Liza as "Dujy Landgar" on the Jack Paar show, March 1963. Paar says "Diju" instead of "Dujy," then reveals her to be Judy Garland's daughter. Terrible video quality but the sound is OK.

Liza would NEVER have made it without her connections. She is too ugly. And can't sing pop.

It’s shocking that she’s still alive.

Liza in top form on July 6, 1986, at Giants Stadium (which is now gone) in East Rutherford, New Jersey. This was the closing concert of the "Liberty Weekend" celebration of the Statue of Liberty's 100th anniversary.

R338 Her sloppy boobs are hilarious.

It's not a question of whether she would be a star. She IS a star, practically the definition of a star. But some stars don't gain the recognition they deserve. I think she squandered much of her talent, due to drinking and drugs, but when she's been in great shape, no one else can perform like she can.

Liza strengths lied in musicals, but musicals weren't being produced (with rare exceptions) during her peak years in the 70s and 80s. Yes of course the drugs and booze and Studio 54 had something to do with it, but the lack of musicals to showcase Liza was another factor.

She’s a gay icon. Period.

Liza, the most sensational performer in the past 50 years. She's electric on stage. Outstanding talent.

I've just watched Cabaret for the first time in years. I wish they could have shown some of that homo sex that was going on. Michael York was gorgeous.

Liza was extraordinary and truly deserved that Oscar.

Lizsha!

[quote]While I think she had the talent to be a star I don't think she ever would have gotten her foot in the door if not for being the child of JG and VM. Her looks were too unusual and her singing too while good for B'way would not have struck with young people in the 1960s.

Bette Midler and Barbra Streisand both made it in this time period without connections or good looks.