Bette was born in Honolulu, Hawai'i and attended Radford High School. She majored in drama at the University of Hawai'i, but left after three semesters. Midler moved to New York City in 1965, and played an extra in the 1966 movie Hawai'i. She began her professional career in Off-Broadway Plays prior to being selected to play in the Broadway plays Fiddler on the Roof and Salvation in the late 1960's. She began singing in the Continental Baths in 1970 and built a core following, along with her pianist, Barry Manilow.
In 1974, Midler received a special Tony Award for her contribution to Broadway. In 1977, her first television special garnered an Emmy Award for Outstanding Special--Comedy-Variety or Music.
However, Midler's music career was not going as well as Bette was unable to follow her first two hits up. She went through a period of ten single releases (from the albums Songs for the New Depression, Broken Blossom, and Thighs and Whispers) without a Top 10 song. Clearly, she needed a spark, and she got it with the perfect vehicle for her in 1979.
Midler starred in the movie The Rose, loosely based on the life of Janis Joplin. Bette not only won the Golden Globe for Best Actress and a similar nomination from the Academy Awards; she sang on the soundtrack album. "When A Man Loves A Woman" hit #35, but should have been ranked much higher.
"The Rose" was also nominated for a Grammy for Record of the Year. Midler went on a world concert tour, with her show in Pasadena, California filmed and released as the concert movie Divine Madness. The Soundtrack earned Bette a nomination at the Grammy Awards for Album of the Year. "My Mother's Eyes", from the album, hit #8 on the Adult Contemporary chart.
Midler's 1983 album No Frills did not sell, as none of the three singles caught on. Bette sang on U.S.A. for Africa's fund-raising single "We Are the World", which went to #1, and she performed at the Live Aid event in Philadelphia.
In 1988, she starred in the movie Beaches, which produced her biggest career hit, "Wind Beneath My Wings". The single hit #1 in the U.S. and Australia, #3 in Canada, #4 in New Zealand and #5 in the U.K. and sold over two million copies, while the "Beaches" Soundtrack sold four million. Midler was recognized for the great song at the Grammy Awards, where she won the prestigious Record of the Year honor.
The next year, Bette starred in the movie For the Boys. Although the movie did not do well, Midler won her second Golden Globe Award for Best Actress and was nominated for Best Actress at the Academy Awards.
Midler won an Emmy Award in 1992 for her performance on the final episode of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, during which she sang an emotion-laden "One For My Baby (and One More for the Road)" to Carson. Midler appeared in several other movies (The Stepford Wives, for example) and on other television shows, such as Seinfeld.
Her 1997 HBO special Diva Las Vegas earned her a third Emmy Award, for Outstanding Performance in a Variety or Music Program. Also that year, Midler starred with Goldie Hawn and Diane Keaton in the great comedy The First Wives Club. Afterwards, the three stars received the Women in Film Crystal Award, which honors "outstanding women who, through their endurance and the excellence of their work, have helped to expand the role of women within the entertainment industry."
Midler starred in her own sitcom, Bette on CBS. Bette won a People's Choice Award for her performance in the show and was nominated for another Golden Globe Award. She then made a cameo appearance in one of the great comedies of all-time, What Women Want, starring Mel Gibson and Helen Hunt. The movie grossed over $370 million.
Midler joined Manilow again in 2005 for a tribute album, Bette Midler Sings the Peggy Lee Songbook. It became a Top 10 album and Bette was nominated for a Grammy Award for it.
In 2006, Midler released the Christmas album Cool Yule, which was nominated for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album at the Grammy Awards.
Midler has continued to act, record, tour, and perform on Las Vegas as one of the most versatile entertainers of our lifetimes. She has appeared on 24 television shows or specials and starred in 33 motion pictures. In 2012, she received the Sammy Cahn Lifetime Achievement Award at the Songwriters Hall of Fame in recognition of her "captivating the world" with her "stylish presentation and unmistakable voice."
The two became close, and Manilow produced Bette's first album, The Divine Miss M, in 1972. The album went Top 10, and sold over one million copies, earning Midler a Best New Artist award at the Grammys. Bette's first career single, "Do You Want To Dance", went to #8 on the Easy Listening chart and #17 overall in the U.S. and #18 in Canada.
Bette's reworking of the 1941 Andrews Sisters swing tune "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" gave Midler a #1 Easy Listening hit--it was #8 overall in both the United States and Canada. She was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female.
In 1974, Midler received a special Tony Award for her contribution to Broadway. In 1977, her first television special garnered an Emmy Award for Outstanding Special--Comedy-Variety or Music.
However, Midler's music career was not going as well as Bette was unable to follow her first two hits up. She went through a period of ten single releases (from the albums Songs for the New Depression, Broken Blossom, and Thighs and Whispers) without a Top 10 song. Clearly, she needed a spark, and she got it with the perfect vehicle for her in 1979.
Midler starred in the movie The Rose, loosely based on the life of Janis Joplin. Bette not only won the Golden Globe for Best Actress and a similar nomination from the Academy Awards; she sang on the soundtrack album. "When A Man Loves A Woman" hit #35, but should have been ranked much higher.
While the initial single from the project didn't work out like she had hoped, the second one was magic. "The Rose" gave Midler her a #1 Adult Contemporary smash (#1 for five weeks); it was #2 in Canada and #3 on the "Popular" chart in the U.S.. The single was certified Gold, it helped the soundtrack sell over two million copies, and Bette came home with the Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female.
"The Rose" was also nominated for a Grammy for Record of the Year. Midler went on a world concert tour, with her show in Pasadena, California filmed and released as the concert movie Divine Madness. The Soundtrack earned Bette a nomination at the Grammy Awards for Album of the Year. "My Mother's Eyes", from the album, hit #8 on the Adult Contemporary chart.
Midler's 1983 album No Frills did not sell, as none of the three singles caught on. Bette sang on U.S.A. for Africa's fund-raising single "We Are the World", which went to #1, and she performed at the Live Aid event in Philadelphia.
Midler signed a deal with Walt Disney Studios, and she appeared in the movies Down and Out in Beverly Hills, Ruthless People, Outrageous Fortune and Big Business.
In 1988, she starred in the movie Beaches, which produced her biggest career hit, "Wind Beneath My Wings". The single hit #1 in the U.S. and Australia, #3 in Canada, #4 in New Zealand and #5 in the U.K. and sold over two million copies, while the "Beaches" Soundtrack sold four million. Midler was recognized for the great song at the Grammy Awards, where she won the prestigious Record of the Year honor.
In 1990, Midler released the album Some People's Lives, which gave her another smash hit. "From A Distance" shot up to #1 on the AC chart and #2 overall, and reached #3 in Germany and New Zealand, #6 in the U.K., #7 in Canada and #8 in Australia, and sold over two million copies. The song was also nominated for Record of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female.
The next year, Bette starred in the movie For the Boys. Although the movie did not do well, Midler won her second Golden Globe Award for Best Actress and was nominated for Best Actress at the Academy Awards.
Midler won an Emmy Award in 1992 for her performance on the final episode of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, during which she sang an emotion-laden "One For My Baby (and One More for the Road)" to Carson. Midler appeared in several other movies (The Stepford Wives, for example) and on other television shows, such as Seinfeld.
Her 1997 HBO special Diva Las Vegas earned her a third Emmy Award, for Outstanding Performance in a Variety or Music Program. Also that year, Midler starred with Goldie Hawn and Diane Keaton in the great comedy The First Wives Club. Afterwards, the three stars received the Women in Film Crystal Award, which honors "outstanding women who, through their endurance and the excellence of their work, have helped to expand the role of women within the entertainment industry."
Midler starred in her own sitcom, Bette on CBS. Bette won a People's Choice Award for her performance in the show and was nominated for another Golden Globe Award. She then made a cameo appearance in one of the great comedies of all-time, What Women Want, starring Mel Gibson and Helen Hunt. The movie grossed over $370 million.
Midler joined Manilow again in 2005 for a tribute album, Bette Midler Sings the Peggy Lee Songbook. It became a Top 10 album and Bette was nominated for a Grammy Award for it.
In 2006, Midler released the Christmas album Cool Yule, which was nominated for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album at the Grammy Awards.
Midler has continued to act, record, tour, and perform on Las Vegas as one of the most versatile entertainers of our lifetimes. She has appeared on 24 television shows or specials and starred in 33 motion pictures. In 2012, she received the Sammy Cahn Lifetime Achievement Award at the Songwriters Hall of Fame in recognition of her "captivating the world" with her "stylish presentation and unmistakable voice."
Midler has won three Grammy Awards, four Golden Globes, three Emmys and a special Tony Award. She has sold over 30 million albums worldwide. Bette has seven Top 10 songs on the Adult Contemporary chart with three #1's, and four Top 10's on the "Popular" chart.
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