Liza May Minnelli ( ; born March 12, 1946) is an American actress, singer, and dancer. Known for her commanding stage presence and powerful alto singing voice, Minnelli has received numerous accolades, including an Academy Awards, a BAFTA Award, an Emmy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, and four Tony Awards. She is one of the few performers awarded a non-competitive EGOT having received an honorary Grammy Award. Minnelli is a Knight of the French Legion of Honour.
Minnelli's parents were actress and singer Judy Garland and director Vincente Minnelli. After moving to New York City in 1961, she began her career as a musical theatre actress, nightclub performer, and traditional pop artist. She made her professional stage debut in the Off-Broadway revival of Best Foot Forward (1963).Scott Schechter (2004): The Liza Minnelli Scrapbook, pp. 12–13. She became known for her collaborations with John Kander and Fred Ebb,Scott Schechter (2004): The Liza Minnelli Scrapbook, p. 47. and later won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her roles in the Broadway musicals Flora the Red Menace (1965) and The Act (1978). She was Tony-nominated for The Rink (1984). She won Special Tony Awards for Liza at the Winter Garden (1974) and Liza at the Palace! (2009).
On film, Minnelli had her breakthrough performance in the drama film The Sterile Cuckoo (1969), earning her a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress. She later received the award playing Sally Bowles in the musical film Cabaret (1972), which brought her to international prominence. She starred in a string of films such as Lucky Lady (1975), New York, New York (1977), Arthur (1981), Rent-a-Cop (1988), and Stepping Out (1991).Scott Schechter (2004): The Liza Minnelli Scrapbook, p. 87. On television, she had a career resurgence as a recurring guest star on the sitcom Arrested Development (2003–2013).
Her concert performances at Carnegie Hall in 1979 and 1987 and at Radio City Music Hall in 1991 and 1992 are recognized among her most successful. From 1988 to 1990, she toured with Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr. in Frank, Liza & Sammy: The Ultimate Event. Minnelli is known for her renditions of American standards and is known for her signature songs which include "New York, New York", "Cabaret", and "Maybe This Time".James Leve (2009): Kander and Ebb, p. 20.Scott Schechter (2004): The Liza Minnelli Scrapbook, pp. 13, 127Scott Schechter (2006): The Complete Capitol Collection Throughout her later years, she has suffered serious health problems and avoided huge concerts in favor of small retrospective performances. Her life was profiled in the 2024 documentary, .
Minnelli's first performing experience on film was at age three, appearing in the final scene of the musical In the Good Old Summertime (1949); the film stars Garland and Van Johnson. In 1961, she moved to New York City, attending High School of Performing Arts and later, Chadwick School.
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.
From 1968 to the 1970s, Minnelli also recorded her albums Liza Minnelli (1968), Come Saturday Morning and New Feelin' (both 1970) for A&M Records. In 1973, Minnelli sang back up with Ronnie Spector for Alice Cooper's song "Teenage Lament '74" from the album Muscle of Love (1973). She released her solo albums The Singer (1973) and Tropical Nights (1977) on Columbia Records.
In 1989, Minnelli collaborated with the Pet Shop Boys on Results, an electronic dance-style album. The release hit the top 10 in the UK and charted in the U.S., spawning four singles: "Losing My Mind"; "Don't Drop Bombs"; "So Sorry, I Said"; and "Love Pains". Later that year, she performed "Losing My Mind" live at the Grammy Awards ceremony before receiving a Grammy Legend Award (the first Grammy Legend Awards were issued in 1990 to Minnelli, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Smokey Robinson, and Willie Nelson). With this award, she became one of only 16 people—a list that includes composer Richard Rodgers, Whoopi Goldberg, Barbra Streisand, and John Gielgud and others—to win an Emmy, Grammy, Tony Award and Academy Award.
In April 1992, Minnelli appeared at the tribute concert for her late friend Freddie Mercury, performing "We Are the Champions" with the surviving members of the rock band Queen at Wembley Stadium in London. "The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert: We Are the Champions". Ultimate Queen. Retrieved December 8, 2012 In 1996, Minnelli released a studio album titled Gently. It was a recording of jazz standards and included contemporary songs such as the cover of Does He Love You which she performed as a duet with Donna Summer. This album brought her a Grammy nomination for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Performance.
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. Liza Minnelli's "Confessions" CD Due in September; Artwork Revealed . Playbill.com (May 11, 2010). Retrieved on April 2, 2012.
Minnelli appeared in The Sterile Cuckoo (1969), Alan J. Pakula's first feature film as Director, 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.
Minnelli appeared in her best-known film role, Sally Bowles, in the film version of Cabaret (1972). She said that one of the things she did to prepare was to study photographs of actresses Louise Glaum and Louise Brooks and the dark-haired women of the era in which the film is set. Minnelli won the Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role for her performance, along with a Golden Globe Award, BAFTA Award, and also Sant Jordi Award and David di Donatello Award for Best Foreign Actress.
Following the success of Cabaret, Bob Fosse and Minnelli teamed for Liza with a "Z", a concert for television that aired twice, then was not seen again until a 2005 restoration.
Minnelli appeared in three expensive flops in three years, with Variety suggesting by 1978 that she was the number-one choice for box office poison. First was Lucky Lady (1975), then she worked with her father in A Matter of Time (1976), co-starring Ingrid Bergman and then New York, New York (1977), which gave Minnelli her best known signature song. She sometimes performed duets on stage with Frank Sinatra, who recorded a cover version (for his album).
Minnelli made fewer film appearances from then on, but her next film, Arthur (1981), where she starred as Dudley Moore's love interest, was a big hit. She returned to film for Rent-A-Cop and (both 1988) and Stepping Out (1991), a musical comedy drama. She later appeared in The Oh in Ohio in 2006, which received only a limited release in theatres.
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.
Much later in her career, Minnelli made appearances on shows such as a recurring role on Arrested Development and guest spots on , Drop Dead Diva, and Smash. In the UK, she appeared on the Ruby Wax, Graham Norton and Jonathan Ross shows, and in October 2006, participated in a comedy skit on Charlotte Church's show and was featured on Michael Parkinson's show.
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. 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.Cox, Gordon (September 17, 2009) "Liza's 'Palace' to get TV reprise". Variety.
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 concert produced by future husband David Gest. Minnelli told reporters: "I am stable as a table."
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.
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 Bluth. Minnelli appeared in the role for the show's fourth season in 2013.
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 four-year restoration.
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 in "Masquerade", a Halloween-themed episode, broadcast on October 31, 2006.
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".
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. Liza's at The Palace ...! Extends Through the New Year . Playbill.com. Retrieved on April 2, 2012. In her second act, she performed a series of numbers created by Thompson.
Minnelli was a character in the Australian musical The Boy from Oz (a biography of her first husband, Peter Allen) starring Hugh Jackman. In the show's Broadway production, she was portrayed by Stephanie J. Block. In October 2009, Minnelli toured Australia and appeared on Australian Idol as a mentor and guest judge. Minnelli made a cameo appearance in the May 2010 release of Sex and the City 2, in which she covered Beyoncé's hit "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" and Cole Porter's "Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye". She made a starring appearance in December 2010 in The Apprentice.
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.
On June 14, 2012, Minnelli headlined at Hampton Court Palace Festival. On May 9, 2014, Minnelli had a guest appearance on Cher's Dressed to Kill Tour in Brooklyn, performing "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" with Cyndi Lauper and Rosie O'Donnell.
In 2024, Minnelli announced her plans to release her memoir, Kids, Wait Till You Hear This!, on March 10, 2026.
On January 21, 2026, Minnelli released the single "Kids Wait Till You Hear This". The song used AI technology and was created by ElevenLabs for an AI-assisted album. After a backlash for using AI, Minnelli released a statement, saying,
"What I will not allow the to do? Create, clone or copy my voice! On this dance track, "Kids Wait Till You Hear This" which is a tease for my book, we used AI arrangements. Not AI vocals. A few trolls didn’t bother to read the truth, check with me or my partners. The shout outs are all mine! Go listen, enjoy, and shake your pretty buns to the music, as we glide down the runway to send my book into the world and your very own hot hands."
Of the many physical ailments that Minnelli has, as a result of her long and demanding career as a dancer, one is inherited. She has lived and performed with scoliosis since her youth, and actually developed unique and signature dance moves and techniques because of the pain: "I found out that because of the scoliosis, if I lean back one way it hurts. The only reason I do anything like I do is because it’s the only way I can do it without hurting! Literally. It’s really funny. It is so weird ... I’ve got two false hips, a wired-up knee, scoliosis, which I’ve always had, and three crushed disks, but I feel great. I dance every day.” Liza Minnelli’s Scoliosis Story - By Andrew Strauss
Minnelli's friendships have included the singer Adam Ant, whom she advised on what to wear when he was presented to Queen Elizabeth II after the 1981 Royal Variety Performance at which his band Adam and the Ants performed. Ant in turn namechecked Minnelli in the track "Crackpot History and the Right To Lie" on his 1982 solo album Friend or Foe.
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.
After her separation from Allen, Minnelli was engaged to actor Desi Arnaz Jr., and comic actor Peter Sellers.
Minnelli married Jack Haley Jr., a producer and director, on September 15, 1974. "Liza Minnelli marries Haley" Eugene Register-Guardian, September 16, 1974 His father, Jack Haley, was Minnelli's mother's co-star in The Wizard of Oz who played the Tin Man. They divorced in April 1979. "Liza Minnelli Divorced" Bangor Daily News, April 11, 1979
Minnelli was married to Mark Gero, a sculptor and stage manager, from December 4, 1979, until their divorce in January 1992. "Divorce Granted for Liza Minnelli" Daily News, January 30, 1992
Minnelli was married to David Gest, a concert promoter, from March 16, 2002, until their separation in July 2003 and divorce in April 2007.Maull, Samuel. "Minnelli, Gest End Lawsuits, to Divorce" The Washington Post, January 18, 2007 "Gest: Liza's still a legend" Irish Examiner, April 20, 2007 The wedding boasted over 1,200 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. In a 2003 lawsuit, Gest alleged that Minnelli beat him in alcohol-induced rages during their marriage. 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.
She also had relationships with Rock Brynner (son of Yul Brynner), Mikhail Baryshnikov, Billy Stritch, and film director Martin Scorsese. The Children of Legends, photo by Ron Galella". Life Magazine, March 27, 1973Smilgis, Martha. Lucy's Baby Desi Arnaz Jr. Is Still Reaching, but Now It's for Stardom, Not Starlets" . People Magazine, June 19, 1978 Her close friendship with French singer Charles Aznavour was described by Aznavour as "more than friends and less than lovers."
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.
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".Holly O'Dell . Palm Springs Life In 1994, she recorded the Kander & Ebb tune "The Day After That" and donated the proceeds to AIDS research. The same year, she performed the song in front of thousands in Central Park at the 25th anniversary of the Stonewall riots.
Philanthropy
Discography
Credits
Film
1949 In the Good Old Summertime Robert Z. Leonard The Daughter Uncredited role 1954 The Long, Long Trailer Vincente Minnelli Little Girl at Wedding Scenes deleted 1968 Charlie Bubbles Albert Finney Eliza 1969 The Sterile Cuckoo Alan J. Pakula Mary Ann "Pookie" Adams Nominated - Academy Award for Best Actress 1970 Tell Me That You Love Me, Junie Moon Otto Preminger Junie Moon 1972 Cabaret Bob Fosse Sally Bowles Won - Academy Award for Best Actress Journey Back to Oz Hal Sutherland Dorothy Gale Voice 1974 That's Entertainment! Jack Haley Jr. Host 1975 Lucky Lady Stanley Donen Claire 1976 Silent Movie Mel Brooks Herself Cameo appearance A Matter of Time Vincente Minnelli Nina 1977 New York, New York Martin Scorsese Francine Evans 1981 Arthur Steve Gordon Linda Marolla 1982 The King of Comedy Martin Scorsese Herself Scenes deleted; appears as cardboard cutout 1984 The Muppets Take Manhattan Frank Oz Cameo appearance 1985 That's Dancing! Jack Haley Jr. 1988 Rent-a-Cop Jerry London Della Roberts Bud Yorkin Linda Marolla Bach 1991 Stepping Out Lewis Gilbert Mavis Turner 2006 The Oh in Ohio Billy Kent Alyssa Donahue 2010 Sex and the City 2 Michael Patrick King Herself Cameo appearance 2019 Halston Frédéric Tcheng 2024 Bruce David Klein Documentary
Television
1956 Ford Star Jubilee Herself The first full-scale color telecast on CBS 1960 Hedda Hopper's Hollywood Minnelli sings "Over the Rainbow" 1963 The Judy Garland Show Episodes 3 and 15 ("The Judy Garland Christmas Special") 1964 Mr. Broadway Minnie Episode: "Nightingale for Sale" Judy and Liza at the Palladium Herself Television special with Judy Garland 1965 The Dangerous Christmas of Red Riding Hood Television special 1967 Woody Allen Looks at 1967 1968 That's Life Secretary Episode: "Twas the Night Before Christmas" 1970 Liza Herself Television special 1972 Liza with a "Z" 1974 Love from A to Z Television special with Charles Aznavour 46th Academy Awards Performed opening number 1979 The Muppet Show Episode: "Liza Minnelli" 1980 Goldie and Liza Together Television special with Goldie Hawn An Evening with Liza Minnelli Television special 1984 Faerie Tale Theatre Princess Alecia Episode: "The Princess and the Pea" 1985 A Time to Live Mary-Lou Weisman Television movie 1986 Liza in London Herself Television special 1987 Minnelli on Minnelli: Liza Remembers Vincente Documentary 1988 Sam Found Out: A Triple Play Television special 1989 Frank, Liza & Sammy: The Ultimate Event Television special with Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr. 1992 The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert Television special Liza Live from Radio City Music Hall 1993 Liza and Friends: A Tribute to Sammy Davis Jr. 1994 Parallel Lives Stevie Merrill Television movie 1995 The West Side Waltz Cara Varnum 1999 Jackie's Back Herself Cameo; Television film 2003–05
2013Arrested Development Lucille Austero 21 episodes 2006 Beth Harner Episode: "" 2009 Drop Dead Diva Lily Wells Episode: "Make Me a Match" 2009, 2010 Herself 2 Episodes, "I Heart Lily Tomlin" and "Kathy With a Z" 2013 Smash Herself Episode: "The Surprise Party" 2022 94th Academy Awards Herself – Co-Presenter Presented Best Picture with Lady Gaga 2025 RuPaul's Drag Race Herself Episode: "Grand Finale"
Theatre
1961 Wish You Were Here Ballet solo Cape Cod Melody Tent, Massachusetts Take Me Along Muriel Flower Drum Song Chorus 1961–62 The Diary of Anne Frank Anne Frank Scarsdale High School, Scarsdale
New York and Israel Tour1963 Best Foot Forward Ethel Hofflinger Stage 73, Off-Broadway 1964 Carnival! Lili Paper Mill Playhouse, New Jersey Time Out For Ginger Ginger Bucks County Playhouse, Pennsylvania The Fantasticks Luisa US National Tour 1965 Flora the Red Menace Flora Alvin Theatre, Broadway 1966 The Pajama Game Babe Williams US National Tour 1974 Liza Herself (one-woman show) Winter Garden Theatre, Broadway 1975 Chicago Roxie Hart 46th Street Theatre, Broadway
Note: replacement for Gwen Verdon1977–78 The Act Michelle Craig Majestic Theatre, Broadway 1978 Are You Now or Have You Ever Been? Letter Reader (cameo) Promenade Theatre, Off-Broadway 1978–79 The Owl and the Pussycat The Storyteller Metropolitan Opera House, New York City 1984 The Rink Angel Martin Beck Theatre, Broadway 1994 Love Letters Melissa Gardner Coconut Grove Playhouse, Florida 1997 Victor/Victoria Victoria Grant Marquis Theatre, Broadway
Note: vacation replacement for Julie Andrews1999–2000 Herself (one-woman show) Palace Theatre, Broadway 2008–09 Liza's at The Palace.... Herself (one-woman show) 2013 Liza & Alan Herself Town Hall, Broadway
Awards and nominations
1965 Tony Awards Best Actress in a Musical Flora the Red Menace Tony Awards tonyawards.com 1974 Special Tony Award Liza at the Winter Garden 1978 Best Actress in a Musical The Act 1984 The Rink 2009 Best Special Theatrical Event Liza's at The Palace... Tony Awards ibdb.com 1989 Razzie Awards Worst Actress 1990 Grammy Awards Grammy Legend Award Liza Minnelli 1997 Best Traditional Pop Vocal Performance Gently 2010 Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album Liza's at The Palace...!
See also
Further reading
External links
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