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TCM Schedule for Friday, August 17, 2018 -- Summer Under The Stars -- Barbra Streisand
Day Seventeen of Summer Under the Stars, with Barbra Streisand. Here's the deets...An iconic entertainer with over 70 million albums sold and Grammy, Oscar, Tony, Emmy and Golden Globe awards for acting and directing, Barbra Streisand's popularity and creative output spanned over four decades. The New York cabaret singer first hit big as a pop singer and Broadway star in the 1960s. By the 1970s, she was the No. 1 female box office draw with a succession of gold albums that symbolized a new potential success for women in the feminism era. On film, Streisand won over audiences as fast-talking, quick-witted dames in "Funny Girl" (1968) and "What's Up Doc?" (1974), prior to maturing into an acclaimed film producer and director of "The Prince of Tides" (1991) and other stories of personal growth, like "Yentl" (1983). Streisand's musical output evolved from its theater roots to contemporary songwriters and she charted No. 1 albums in every decade, from "The Way We Were" in 1973 to "Love is the Answer" in 2009. Due to a crippling phobia of signing live, she virtually disappeared from stage performing for 25 years, but remained in the public eye with her film career and status as an active philanthropist in liberal political and social causes, even as unflattering tales of megalomaniac tendencies persisted in show business circles. Streisand shrugged off detractors by noting that healthy ambition in men was often perceived as an unattractive pushiness in women, and ultimately, Streisand reigned supreme for her artistic legacy and overall cultural impact in the latter twentieth century.
Born Barbara Streisand on April 24, 1942, Streisand was raised in Brooklyn, NY. Her mother, Diana Rosen, was left to raise Streisand and her younger brother Sheldon when father Emanuel Streisand, an educator and scholar, died when his daughter was just three months old. With the exception of a brief and rocky remarriage that brought Streisand a half sister Rosyln, Streisand was raised largely by her single mother who worked for the New York school system. Streisand herself was an honor student at Erasmus Hall High School, where she had a bit of an oddball reputation and harbored ambitions for an acting career. While still a teenager, Streisand won a singing contest at a nightclub and began landing paid singing gigs around Greenwich Village. She found an acting coach, landed an agent and was still a teenager when she secured jobs in Chicago and San Francisco, though a two-week engagement in Canada was cut short when the audience did not understand Streisand's bohemian personal style and choice of rather obscure older songs. The club's owner famously advised the young singer that she would never make it in show business. Few shared his sentiment, though, and Streisand quickly gained widespread exposure with television appearances, including "The Tonight Show" (NBC, 1954- ) in 1961. Further nudging her to stardom was her 1962 Broadway debut in the musical comedy "I Can Get It for You Wholesale," which confirmed Streisand's promise as a song "belter" and earned the newcomer a Tony nomination.
Smelling a pop music goldmine, executives at Columbia Records signed the 20-year-old, who insisted on a clause giving her the right to choose her own material. In quick succession, Columbia released a pair of albums featuring Streisand's interpretations of theater tunes and cabaret standards, with The Barbra Streisand Album taking home two Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year. In addition to her nearly overnight stardom, Streisand's off-stage life blossomed with her marriage to actor Elliot Gould (who had yet to even make his screen debut) in 1963. She was nominated for a second Tony Award in 1964 for her portrayal of early Broadway star Fanny Brice in "Funny Girl," which established her early persona as a sassy, take-no-guff dame. No mere stage gimmick, Streisand's many late night talk show appearances showcased a confident, fearless young woman unlike any wilting-flower chanteuse that had come before, and her off-the-cuff banter with hosts like Mike Wallace and David Susskind bordered on the sort of confrontational generation gaps one would expect from Bob Dylan. Streisand's youthful appeal led to her first No. 1 Billboard album, People, and a deal with CBS. In 1965, Streisand brought her songbook to American television audiences in an Emmy Award-winning music special, "My Name Is Barbra" (CBS, 1965). The accompanying album earned Streisand another Grammy Award the following year; the same year she gave birth to her only child, Jason Gould.
After a well-received run on the London stage in "Funny Girl," Streisand took the role to the big screen in a 1968 adaptation directed by Golden Age great, William Wyler. Audiences were charmed by Streisand's wit and high-energy live performances, leading to an Academy Award for Best Actress for her film debut; an award she accepted wearing infamous see-through "pajamas." Two more stage musical adaptations followed, with Streisand starring as a Victorian-era matchmaker in the classic "Hello, Dolly!" (1969), an enormous box office hit directed by Gene Kelly, but she fared less well in Vincente Minnelli's fantastical "On A Clear Day You Can See Forever" (1970). Streisand put singing aside and took a stab at straight-up comedy in "The Owl and the Pussycat" (1970), co-starring as mismatched roommates with an aspiring writer (George Segal). Her off-screen pairing with Gould also proved a mismatch and the pair filed for divorce in 1971. The following year, the undisputed queen of the 1970s screwball comedy revival was born in earnest with "What's Up, Doc?" (1972). The Peter Bogdanovich-helmed classic concerning mistaken luggage identity and jewel thieves paired Streisand for the first time with Ryan O'Neal, and their chemistry contributed to what became a wildly popular and well-regarded comic success. Meanwhile Streisand's 13th album release, "Stoney End," marked a shift in her musical career, with a focus on new material from contemporary songwriters ranging from Randy Newman to Joni Mitchell. The change in direction proved successful, and the album hit No. 10 and sold well over a million copies.Streisand returned to No. 1 on the charts for the soundtrack to the film "The Way We Were," her first challenge as a dramatic actress. Sydney Pollack helmed the nostalgic romance with political overtones, pairing Streisand and Robert Redford as star-crossed lovers to great success. The tearjerker brought another Oscar nomination for Streisand. The versatile actress followed with a comic performance in "For Pete's Sake" (1974), a farcical misadventure about a Brooklyn housewife whose attempt to invest in the stock market goes sour. After reluctantly reprising her beloved Fanny Brice characterization in the sequel "Funny Lady" (1975), Streisand teamed with fellow musician and actor Kris Kristofferson in an updated version of the film, "A Star is Born" (1976). Streisand gave another standout performance as a rising cabaret singer taken under the wing (and into the bed) of a stadium rock star who is rapidly deteriorating from the excesses of fame. In addition to taking home a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress, Streisand won an Oscar and a Grammy for Song of the Year for the film's mega-hit theme song, "Evergreen." In 1977, Streisand enjoyed a significant musical accomplishment with the album Streisand Superman, returning to No. 1 on the charts in 1979 with the disco duet "No More Tears" ("Enough is Enough)" performed fellow diva, Donna Summer. She re-teamed with Ryan O'Neal in the wildly successful - though critically panned - romantic comedy, "The Main Event" (1979), which also spawned a gold-selling soundtrack, though nothing could compare to the 1980 album "Guilty," a collaboration with Barry Gibb of the songwriting brothers The Bee Gees.
"Guilty" topped Streisand's career record sales, reaching No. 1 on the charts in over a dozen countries and earning she and Gibb a Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group for the title track. Meanwhile, the box office flop "All Night Long" (1981), starring Streisand as an untalented singer-songwriter married to a firefighter, broke her decade-long box office spell. Preferring to take more time between films and exercise more creative control, it was two years before she appeared on screen again in "Yentl" (1983), the story of a Jewish girl who disguises herself as a boy in order to pursue an education. "Yentl" was actually 15 years in the making, and upped Streisand's status to that of the first woman to produce, direct, write and star in a major Hollywood motion picture. Her labor of love adaptation of the Isaac Bashevis Singer short story was a box office success and Streisand was honored with a Golden Globe for Best Director. In short order, she scored a No. 1 album with "The Broadway Album," a collection of well-loved theatrical compositions that sold nearly six million copies and garnered Streisand another Grammy Award for Best Vocal Performance. The formation of the Streisand Foundation in 1986 added a new dimension to the powerful showbiz player's career and through her tens of millions of dollars in future grants, she voiced strong support for issues related to the environment, women's rights, voter education, and nuclear disarmament.
Streisand returned to theaters in 1987 as the producer and star of "Nuts," for which she earned a Golden Globe nomination for starring as a woman who commits a self-defense murder and lands in a courtroom trying to prove her sanity. Two back-to-back album releases followed; the Top 10 "Till I Loved You" and "One Voice," a career retrospective concert which was also released on DVD and raised millions for the Streisand Foundation. She returned to the film director's chair to helm the 1991 film "The Prince of Tides" (1991), based on Pat Conroy's best-selling novel. Again attracted by stories of personal growth and overcoming odds, Streisand's three-hankie tearjerker dealt with overcoming childhood trauma and difficult family relationships, with Streisand as a sympathetic psychiatrist opposite romantic interest, Nick Nolte. Both critical and popular response to Streisand's sensitive directorial work was notably improved; dismay being largely reserved for Streisand's glamorized appearance and saintly self-casting. The film received seven Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, and Streisand was also nominated for a Best Director Golden Globe. After 27 years away from the concert stage, Streisand began touring in 1994, amassing the top ticket sales of the year and exposing the staggering depths of her fan base. She was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Grammys, and performed some her best-loved material for the camera in "Barbra Streisand: The Concert" (HBO, 1995), which unsurprisingly earned multiple Emmy Awards, reunited her with Barry Gibb, and brought in top ratings for the cable network.
The 53-year-old's energy level seemingly unaffected from seven months of touring, Streisand went on to produce, direct and star in "The Mirror Has Two Faces" (1996), a remake of a 1958 French film of the same name starring Streisand as a plain woman whose marriage to Jeff Bridges is rocked when she undergoes a personal transformation. While a popular box office draw, the film suffered at the hands of critics who were turned off by Streisand's self-indulgent, soft-focus portrayal and broad, precious acting. Regardless, she was nominated for Golden Globe Awards for Best Actress and Best Original song for the theme, "I Finally Found Someone." Public favor still staunchly in her favor, Streisand visited the top spot in the album charts in 1997 with the album, "Higher Ground," which launched a top-selling duet with Celine Dion, "Tell Him." Also during the 1990s, Streisand's Barwood Productions earned positive notice for a number of television specials examining important social and cultural issues including "Serving In Silence: The Margarethe Cammermeyer Story" (NBC, 1995), which exposed harassment of gays serving in the military, and "Rescuers: Stories of Courage," (Showtime, 1997-98), which profiled courageous people who helped save the lives of Jews during the Holocaust. In a personal development, Streisand met actor and director James Brolin in 1996 through mutual friends and the couple was happily married in 1998. Streisand spent the next several years working behind-the-scenes as the executive producer of the special "Reel Models: The First Women of Film" (AMC, 2000), the PBS series "The Living Century" (PBS, 2000), and the Lifetime original film, "What Makes a Family?" (Lifetime, 2001).
Following a five-city tour in 2000, Streisand returned to screens in 2001 in a filmed concert special, "Barbra Streisand: Timeless" (Fox, 2001), which brought in strong ratings and multiple Emmy wins. In a return to her long lamented career as a top notch comedienne, Streisand set aside her usual auteur role and took a role in the comedy sequel, "Meet the Fockers" (2004), playing the often embarrassing therapist mother of "Meet the Parents" (2000) main character Greg Focker (Ben Stiller). Teamed sublimely with Dustin Hoffman as her husband and sharing scenes with Robert De Niro, Streisand nearly walked away with the blockbuster, proving that her comedic skills were as sharp as ever. Her nostalgic return to comedy may have made Streisand nostalgic for her early music career, as she promptly re-teamed with Barry Gibb to record the gold-selling album, "Guilty Pleasures," and hit the road on "Streisand: The Tour," which took her across North America, Canada and Europe. Naturally an accompanying album was released , "Streisand--Live In Concert 2006," which debuted at No. 7 on the Billboard Top 200, and whose sales contributed to Streisand's status in Forbes magazine as the No. 2 highest earning female musician for the previous year; topped only by Madonna. The over-65 songstress beat that stat in 2009 when "Love is the Answer," a collection of best-loved jazz standards, hit No. 1 on the album charts. The following year she reprised her role of Roz Focker in the sequel, "Little Fockers" (2010).
Born Barbara Streisand on April 24, 1942, Streisand was raised in Brooklyn, NY. Her mother, Diana Rosen, was left to raise Streisand and her younger brother Sheldon when father Emanuel Streisand, an educator and scholar, died when his daughter was just three months old. With the exception of a brief and rocky remarriage that brought Streisand a half sister Rosyln, Streisand was raised largely by her single mother who worked for the New York school system. Streisand herself was an honor student at Erasmus Hall High School, where she had a bit of an oddball reputation and harbored ambitions for an acting career. While still a teenager, Streisand won a singing contest at a nightclub and began landing paid singing gigs around Greenwich Village. She found an acting coach, landed an agent and was still a teenager when she secured jobs in Chicago and San Francisco, though a two-week engagement in Canada was cut short when the audience did not understand Streisand's bohemian personal style and choice of rather obscure older songs. The club's owner famously advised the young singer that she would never make it in show business. Few shared his sentiment, though, and Streisand quickly gained widespread exposure with television appearances, including "The Tonight Show" (NBC, 1954- ) in 1961. Further nudging her to stardom was her 1962 Broadway debut in the musical comedy "I Can Get It for You Wholesale," which confirmed Streisand's promise as a song "belter" and earned the newcomer a Tony nomination.
Smelling a pop music goldmine, executives at Columbia Records signed the 20-year-old, who insisted on a clause giving her the right to choose her own material. In quick succession, Columbia released a pair of albums featuring Streisand's interpretations of theater tunes and cabaret standards, with The Barbra Streisand Album taking home two Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year. In addition to her nearly overnight stardom, Streisand's off-stage life blossomed with her marriage to actor Elliot Gould (who had yet to even make his screen debut) in 1963. She was nominated for a second Tony Award in 1964 for her portrayal of early Broadway star Fanny Brice in "Funny Girl," which established her early persona as a sassy, take-no-guff dame. No mere stage gimmick, Streisand's many late night talk show appearances showcased a confident, fearless young woman unlike any wilting-flower chanteuse that had come before, and her off-the-cuff banter with hosts like Mike Wallace and David Susskind bordered on the sort of confrontational generation gaps one would expect from Bob Dylan. Streisand's youthful appeal led to her first No. 1 Billboard album, People, and a deal with CBS. In 1965, Streisand brought her songbook to American television audiences in an Emmy Award-winning music special, "My Name Is Barbra" (CBS, 1965). The accompanying album earned Streisand another Grammy Award the following year; the same year she gave birth to her only child, Jason Gould.
After a well-received run on the London stage in "Funny Girl," Streisand took the role to the big screen in a 1968 adaptation directed by Golden Age great, William Wyler. Audiences were charmed by Streisand's wit and high-energy live performances, leading to an Academy Award for Best Actress for her film debut; an award she accepted wearing infamous see-through "pajamas." Two more stage musical adaptations followed, with Streisand starring as a Victorian-era matchmaker in the classic "Hello, Dolly!" (1969), an enormous box office hit directed by Gene Kelly, but she fared less well in Vincente Minnelli's fantastical "On A Clear Day You Can See Forever" (1970). Streisand put singing aside and took a stab at straight-up comedy in "The Owl and the Pussycat" (1970), co-starring as mismatched roommates with an aspiring writer (George Segal). Her off-screen pairing with Gould also proved a mismatch and the pair filed for divorce in 1971. The following year, the undisputed queen of the 1970s screwball comedy revival was born in earnest with "What's Up, Doc?" (1972). The Peter Bogdanovich-helmed classic concerning mistaken luggage identity and jewel thieves paired Streisand for the first time with Ryan O'Neal, and their chemistry contributed to what became a wildly popular and well-regarded comic success. Meanwhile Streisand's 13th album release, "Stoney End," marked a shift in her musical career, with a focus on new material from contemporary songwriters ranging from Randy Newman to Joni Mitchell. The change in direction proved successful, and the album hit No. 10 and sold well over a million copies.Streisand returned to No. 1 on the charts for the soundtrack to the film "The Way We Were," her first challenge as a dramatic actress. Sydney Pollack helmed the nostalgic romance with political overtones, pairing Streisand and Robert Redford as star-crossed lovers to great success. The tearjerker brought another Oscar nomination for Streisand. The versatile actress followed with a comic performance in "For Pete's Sake" (1974), a farcical misadventure about a Brooklyn housewife whose attempt to invest in the stock market goes sour. After reluctantly reprising her beloved Fanny Brice characterization in the sequel "Funny Lady" (1975), Streisand teamed with fellow musician and actor Kris Kristofferson in an updated version of the film, "A Star is Born" (1976). Streisand gave another standout performance as a rising cabaret singer taken under the wing (and into the bed) of a stadium rock star who is rapidly deteriorating from the excesses of fame. In addition to taking home a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress, Streisand won an Oscar and a Grammy for Song of the Year for the film's mega-hit theme song, "Evergreen." In 1977, Streisand enjoyed a significant musical accomplishment with the album Streisand Superman, returning to No. 1 on the charts in 1979 with the disco duet "No More Tears" ("Enough is Enough)" performed fellow diva, Donna Summer. She re-teamed with Ryan O'Neal in the wildly successful - though critically panned - romantic comedy, "The Main Event" (1979), which also spawned a gold-selling soundtrack, though nothing could compare to the 1980 album "Guilty," a collaboration with Barry Gibb of the songwriting brothers The Bee Gees.
"Guilty" topped Streisand's career record sales, reaching No. 1 on the charts in over a dozen countries and earning she and Gibb a Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group for the title track. Meanwhile, the box office flop "All Night Long" (1981), starring Streisand as an untalented singer-songwriter married to a firefighter, broke her decade-long box office spell. Preferring to take more time between films and exercise more creative control, it was two years before she appeared on screen again in "Yentl" (1983), the story of a Jewish girl who disguises herself as a boy in order to pursue an education. "Yentl" was actually 15 years in the making, and upped Streisand's status to that of the first woman to produce, direct, write and star in a major Hollywood motion picture. Her labor of love adaptation of the Isaac Bashevis Singer short story was a box office success and Streisand was honored with a Golden Globe for Best Director. In short order, she scored a No. 1 album with "The Broadway Album," a collection of well-loved theatrical compositions that sold nearly six million copies and garnered Streisand another Grammy Award for Best Vocal Performance. The formation of the Streisand Foundation in 1986 added a new dimension to the powerful showbiz player's career and through her tens of millions of dollars in future grants, she voiced strong support for issues related to the environment, women's rights, voter education, and nuclear disarmament.
Streisand returned to theaters in 1987 as the producer and star of "Nuts," for which she earned a Golden Globe nomination for starring as a woman who commits a self-defense murder and lands in a courtroom trying to prove her sanity. Two back-to-back album releases followed; the Top 10 "Till I Loved You" and "One Voice," a career retrospective concert which was also released on DVD and raised millions for the Streisand Foundation. She returned to the film director's chair to helm the 1991 film "The Prince of Tides" (1991), based on Pat Conroy's best-selling novel. Again attracted by stories of personal growth and overcoming odds, Streisand's three-hankie tearjerker dealt with overcoming childhood trauma and difficult family relationships, with Streisand as a sympathetic psychiatrist opposite romantic interest, Nick Nolte. Both critical and popular response to Streisand's sensitive directorial work was notably improved; dismay being largely reserved for Streisand's glamorized appearance and saintly self-casting. The film received seven Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, and Streisand was also nominated for a Best Director Golden Globe. After 27 years away from the concert stage, Streisand began touring in 1994, amassing the top ticket sales of the year and exposing the staggering depths of her fan base. She was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Grammys, and performed some her best-loved material for the camera in "Barbra Streisand: The Concert" (HBO, 1995), which unsurprisingly earned multiple Emmy Awards, reunited her with Barry Gibb, and brought in top ratings for the cable network.
The 53-year-old's energy level seemingly unaffected from seven months of touring, Streisand went on to produce, direct and star in "The Mirror Has Two Faces" (1996), a remake of a 1958 French film of the same name starring Streisand as a plain woman whose marriage to Jeff Bridges is rocked when she undergoes a personal transformation. While a popular box office draw, the film suffered at the hands of critics who were turned off by Streisand's self-indulgent, soft-focus portrayal and broad, precious acting. Regardless, she was nominated for Golden Globe Awards for Best Actress and Best Original song for the theme, "I Finally Found Someone." Public favor still staunchly in her favor, Streisand visited the top spot in the album charts in 1997 with the album, "Higher Ground," which launched a top-selling duet with Celine Dion, "Tell Him." Also during the 1990s, Streisand's Barwood Productions earned positive notice for a number of television specials examining important social and cultural issues including "Serving In Silence: The Margarethe Cammermeyer Story" (NBC, 1995), which exposed harassment of gays serving in the military, and "Rescuers: Stories of Courage," (Showtime, 1997-98), which profiled courageous people who helped save the lives of Jews during the Holocaust. In a personal development, Streisand met actor and director James Brolin in 1996 through mutual friends and the couple was happily married in 1998. Streisand spent the next several years working behind-the-scenes as the executive producer of the special "Reel Models: The First Women of Film" (AMC, 2000), the PBS series "The Living Century" (PBS, 2000), and the Lifetime original film, "What Makes a Family?" (Lifetime, 2001).
Following a five-city tour in 2000, Streisand returned to screens in 2001 in a filmed concert special, "Barbra Streisand: Timeless" (Fox, 2001), which brought in strong ratings and multiple Emmy wins. In a return to her long lamented career as a top notch comedienne, Streisand set aside her usual auteur role and took a role in the comedy sequel, "Meet the Fockers" (2004), playing the often embarrassing therapist mother of "Meet the Parents" (2000) main character Greg Focker (Ben Stiller). Teamed sublimely with Dustin Hoffman as her husband and sharing scenes with Robert De Niro, Streisand nearly walked away with the blockbuster, proving that her comedic skills were as sharp as ever. Her nostalgic return to comedy may have made Streisand nostalgic for her early music career, as she promptly re-teamed with Barry Gibb to record the gold-selling album, "Guilty Pleasures," and hit the road on "Streisand: The Tour," which took her across North America, Canada and Europe. Naturally an accompanying album was released , "Streisand--Live In Concert 2006," which debuted at No. 7 on the Billboard Top 200, and whose sales contributed to Streisand's status in Forbes magazine as the No. 2 highest earning female musician for the previous year; topped only by Madonna. The over-65 songstress beat that stat in 2009 when "Love is the Answer," a collection of best-loved jazz standards, hit No. 1 on the album charts. The following year she reprised her role of Roz Focker in the sequel, "Little Fockers" (2010).
Enjoy!
6:00 AM -- THE MAIN EVENT (1979)
A bankrupt perfume magnate uses a inept boxer to bring her back to riches.
Dir: Howard Zieff
Cast: Barbra Streisand, Ryan O'Neal, Paul Sand
C-109 mins, CC,
Diana Ross was the original intended star. According to a Barbra Streisand biography, Ross left the project after her brief affair with Ryan O'Neal turned sour.
7:53 AM -- SLAPSIE MAXIE'S (1939)
In this comedic short, a waiter accidentally knocks out a boxing champion leading to a humorous "rematch." Vitaphone Release 9384-9385.
Dir: Noel Smith
Cast: Leo White, Nat Carr, Sol Gorss
BW-16 mins,
8:15 AM -- WHAT'S UP, DOC? (1972)
The accidental mix up of four identical plaid overnight bags leads to a series of increasingly wild and wacky situations.
Dir: Peter Bogdanovich
Cast: Barbra Streisand, Ryan O'Neal, Madeline Kahn
C-94 mins, CC,
The end of the car chase shows many characters swimming in San Francisco Bay except for the movie's two leads who are floating on water in a Volkswagen Beetle. The car floating was a parody of the VW's ability to float on water which had been a staple of its advertising in recent years. The make and model had also been popularized in the then recent movie The Love Bug (1968).
9:53 AM -- MIRACLE MONEY (1938)
This short film focuses on doctors that scam patients into believing they have cancer.
Dir: Leslie Fenton
Cast: Wally Maher, Claire Du Brey, Fredrik Vogeding
BW-21 mins,
10:15 AM -- THE OWL AND THE PUSSYCAT (1970)
When a bookworm gets a prostitute evicted, she moves into his apartment.
Dir: Herbert Ross
Cast: Barbra Streisand, George Segal, Robert Klein
C-97 mins, CC, Letterbox Format
The inter-racial relationship in the Bill Manhoff source stage play was reflected in the original Broadway production where the couple were portrayed by Alan Alda and African-American actress Diana Sands. If Sidney Poitier had been cast in the lead male role opposite Barbra Streisand, as was considered, then the picture would have preserved the inter-racial relationship of the play, but with the racial types gender reversed.
11:57 AM -- FAMOUS BONERS (1942)
This short film looks at three instances of people who either caused or were the victims of errors.
Dir: Douglas Foster
Cast: Dave O'Brien, Edward McWade, Joe Yule
BW-10 mins,
12:15 PM -- FUNNY GIRL (1968)
Comedienne Fanny Brice fights to prove that she can be the greatest star and find romance even though she isn't pretty.
Dir: William Wyler
Cast: Barbra Streisand, Omar Sharif, Kay Medford
C-155 mins, CC, Letterbox Format
Winner of an Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role -- Barbra Streisand (Tied with Katharine Hepburn for The Lion in Winter (1968).)
Nominee for Oscars for Best Actress in a Supporting Role -- Kay Medford, Best Cinematography -- Harry Stradling Sr., Best Sound, Best Film Editing -- Robert Swink, Maury Winetrobe and William Sands, Best Music, Original Song -- Jule Styne (music) and Bob Merrill (lyrics) for the song "Funny Girl", Best Music, Score of a Musical Picture (Original or Adaptation) -- Walter Scharf, and Best Picture
A publicity photo of Omar Sharif and Barbra Streisand kissing was released to the newspapers. With the emotions of the Six Day War still running high, the Egyptian press began a campaign to get Sharif's citizenship revoked over the kiss. The Egyptian headline read: "Omar Kisses Barbra, Egypt Angry." When asked to respond to the controversy, Streisand tried to make light of it. "Egypt angry!" she said. "You should hear what my Aunt Sarah said!"
2:53 PM -- MAID FOR A DAY (1936)
In this musical short, a fading Broadway entertainer takes a job as a maid. Vitaphone Release 1973-1974.
Dir: Joseph Henabery
Cast: Peter Lind Hayes, Frank Jaquet, Ray Foster
BW-21 mins,
Grace Hayes and Peter Lind Hayes, who play mother and son in this short, were mother and son in real life.
3:15 PM -- FUNNY LADY (1975)
Musical biography of Fanny Brice and her tempestuous marriage to showman Billy Rose.
Dir: Herbert Ross
Cast: Barbra Streisand, James Caan, Omar Sharif
C-138 mins, CC, Letterbox Format
Nominee for Oscars for Best Cinematography -- James Wong Howe, Best Costume Design -- Ray Aghayan and Bob Mackie, Best Sound -- Richard Portman, Don MacDougall, Curly Thirlwell and Jack Solomon, Best Music, Original Song -- Fred Ebb and John Kander for the song "How Lucky Can You Get", and Best Music, Scoring Original Song Score and/or Adaptation -- Peter Matz
Barbra Streisand was considering Robert Blake for the role of Billy Rose, whom he resembled more than James Caan. Streisand had Blake come to her house and read the script with her. After the read-through, an impressed Streisand asked Blake if he'd like to do the part. "I just did", said Blake, miffed that he had been made to audition. He walked out of Streisand's house, and the role was given to Caan.
5:45 PM -- THE WAY WE WERE (1973)
A fiery liberal fights to make her marriage to a successful writer work.
Dir: Sydney Pollack
Cast: Barbra Streisand, Robert Redford, Bradford Dillman
C-118 mins, CC, Letterbox Format
Winner of Oscars for Best Music, Original Song -- Marvin Hamlisch (music), Alan Bergman (lyrics) and Marilyn Bergman (lyrics) for the song "The Way We Were", and Best Music, Original Dramatic Score -- Marvin Hamlisch
Nominee for Oscars for Best Actress in a Leading Role -- Barbra Streisand, Best Cinematography -- Harry Stradling Jr., Best Art Direction-Set Decoration -- Stephen B. Grimes and William Kiernan, and Best Costume Design -- Dorothy Jeakins and Moss Mabry
Barbra Streisand and Robert Redford had very different approaches to acting. Streisand liked to analyze the part at length and rehearse a great deal, while Redford was more of an intuitive actor, preferring to be more spontaneous. According to Sydney Pollack, "Barbra would call me up every night at nine, ten o'clock and talk about the next day's work for an hour, two hours on the phone. Then she'd get in there and start to talk and Bob would want to do it. And Bob felt the more the talk went, the staler he got. She would feel like he was rushing her. The more rehearsing we did, she would begin to go uphill and he would peak and go downhill. So I was like a jockey trying to figure out when to roll the camera and get them to coincide."
TCM PRIMETIME - WHAT'S ON TONIGHT: SUMMER UNDER THE STARS: BARBRA STREISAND
8:00 PM -- YENTL (1983)
A Jewish girl masquerades as a boy to study Torah, but falls in love with her best friend.
Dir: Barbra Streisand
Cast: Barbra Streisand, Mandy Patinkin, Amy Irving
C-133 mins, CC,
Winner of an Oscar for Best Music, Original Song Score and Its Adaptation or Best Adaptation Score -- Michel Legrand (music), Alan Bergman (lyrics) and Marilyn Bergman (lyrics)
Nominee for Oscars for Best Actress in a Supporting Role -- Amy Irving, Best Art Direction-Set Decoration -- Roy Walker, Leslie Tomkins and Tessa Davies, Best Music, Original Song -- Michel Legrand (music), Alan Bergman (lyrics) and Marilyn Bergman (lyrics) for the song "Papa, Can You Hear Me?", and Best Music, Original Song -- Michel Legrand (music), Alan Bergman (lyrics) and Marilyn Bergman (lyrics) for the song "The Way He Makes Me Feel"
For this film, Barbra Streisand became the first woman ever to win the Golden Globe for Best Director. She was later nominated for Best Director at both the Golden Globes and Directors Guild of America Awards for The Prince of Tides (1991). She has to this day never been nominated for Best Director at the Academy Awards but handed out the Oscar for Best Director the first and only time it has been won by a woman (by Kathryn Bigelow).
10:30 PM -- THE PRINCE OF TIDES (1991)
A troubled man talks to his suicidal sister's psychiatrist about their family history and falls in love with her in the process.
Dir: Barbra Streisand
Cast: Nick Nolte, Barbra Streisand, Blythe Danner
C-132 mins, CC,
Nominee for Oscars for Best Actor in a Leading Role -- Nick Nolte, Best Actress in a Supporting Role -- Kate Nelligan, Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published -- Pat Conroy and Becky Johnston, Best Cinematography -- Stephen Goldblatt, Best Art Direction-Set Decoration -- Paul Sylbert and Caryl Heller, Best Music, Original Score -- James Newton Howard, and Best Picture
Chris O'Donnell, who would soon become a star in Scent of a Woman, won the role of Streisand's teenage son, Bernard, but Pat Conroy didn't think he was right. Looking through photos of other young actors, he picked one out, telling Streisand that she should hire him, instead. The actor was Streisand's own son, Jason Gould.
12:47 AM -- SO YOU WANT TO BE IN PICTURES (1947)
Joe McDoakes learns what a bumpy road it can be to become an Hollywood star in this comedic short. Vitaphone Release 1537A.
Dir: Richard Bare
Cast: George O'Hanlon, Jane Harker, Clyde Cook
BW-11 mins,
Nominee for an Oscar for Best Short Subject, One-reel -- Gordon Hollingshead
Actor and future President Ronald Reagan is referred to by the narrator as "Ronnie" Reagan as he walks through the studio streets.
1:00 AM -- A STAR IS BORN (1976)
A fast-rising singer tries to put a has-been rocker back on top.
Dir: Frank R. Pierson
Cast: Barbra Streisand, Kris Kristofferson, Gary Busey
C-140 mins, CC,
Winner of an Oscar for Best Music, Original Song -- Barbra Streisand (music) and Paul Williams (lyrics) for the song "Evergreen (Love Theme from A Star Is Born)"
Nominee for Oscars for Best Cinematography -- Robert Surtees, Best Sound -- Robert Knudson, Dan Wallin, Robert Glass and Tom Overton, and Best Music, Original Song Score and Its Adaptation or Best Adaptation Score -- Roger Kellaway
Barbra Streisand insisted that she wanted Elvis Presley for the part of John Norman Howard. She even went to Las Vegas to see Elvis after one of his performances in 1975, and talked to him directly to convince him to play the part. Elvis wanted to do it, but Colonel Tom Parker, his manager, was angry that Streisand did not come to him first. He told the producers that if they wanted Elvis, Elvis's name had to be at the top of the movie poster, above Streisand's name. Moreover, it was said that he asked them for a very large sum of money. Elvis hadn't been in a movie since 1969, and nobody knew what he could do at the box-office, because of all that, Elvis Presley didn't make the movie, although he had been Streisand's first choice since the beginning of the project.
3:25 AM -- THE LION ROARS AGAIN (1975)
This MGM promotional short advertises the studios resurgence into the movie industry in the mid-1970s.
C-17 mins,
4:00 AM -- UP THE SANDBOX (1972)
A repressed housewife fantasizes about the life she could be living.
Dir: Irvin Kershner
Cast: Barbra Streisand, David Selby, Ariane Heller
C-98 mins, CC, Letterbox Format
Director Irvin Kershner told Streisand biographer James Spada that he wasn't happy with the shooting script but was advised not to express his dissatisfaction to Barbra Streisand, who might walk off the picture. Several days into filming, Streisand went to Kershner and asked him why they were having so much trouble, and he told her they had started shooting with a weak script. Kershner said, "Your people warned me not to tell you." To which Streisand laughed, "That's ridiculous! If a script isn't good enough, let's work to improve it."
5:44 AM -- AN EVENING ALONE (1938)
In this comedic short, a man finds a lot to do when his wife decides to go out with a girlfriend.
Dir: Roy Rowland
Cast: Robert Benchley,
BW-9 mins,
