Tuesday 23 October 2007

*And the award goes to...*



Liza Minnelli has achieved a lifetime of Memories, of goals and has entertained the worlds for 45 years. She been on the stage, the screen, danced her ass off and sung her guts out. Liza's career ares been recognized as that of lustre, dedication and true commitment to the theater and to the world. The first Award that Liza won was in 1965, for Best Actress, for her performance of Flora in 'Flora the Red Menace', at just 19 years old, she is the youngest actress to ever win a Tony Award. On March 27Th 1973, Just 2 weeks after her 27Th Birthday, Liza won an Academy Award for Best Actress, for her performance of Sally Bowles in 'Cabaret'. Joel Grey won Best Supporting Actor that night, As you can see from the above picture. She was also nominated for Best Actress for the 1969 release of 'The Sterile Cuckoo'. The following year, 1974, Liza was awarded her second Tony, a 'special' Award for her dedication to the theater. Her Third Tony was honored to her in 1978 for her one woman show, 'The Act'. Liza was also nominated for Best Actress in 1984, along with Bernadette Peters for 'Sunday in the park with George' and Rhetta Hughes for 'Amen Corner', for her role in 'The Rink' but lost out to her fellow cast member, Chita Rivera. On July 24Th 2001, Liza accepted a GLAAD (gay & lesbian alliance against defamation) Vanguard Award at "The 16Th Annual GLAAD Media Awards, honored for being a member of the entertainment community who has made a significant difference in promoting equal rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.
Liza quotes: "I must say, I've been given some awards in my time, but this is very, very important to me. I'm moved and I'm honored to receive this award from a wonderful organization that I deeply believe in, and that's GLAAD," Minnelli said in accepting the award. "Love is the most cherished feeling we have; it's unique to human beings, and if anyone thinks they can dismiss love through politics, they're nuts." Among the three Tony's, The Oscar and the GLAAD award she's won, Liza can safely boast a few more. She won a Golden Globe for her performance in 'Cabaret' in 1973, A second Globe for her performance in 'A Time to Live' in 1986 and has been nominated four more times for The 'Sterile Cuckoo', 'Lucky Lady', 'New York, New York' and 'Arthur'.
She also won a Living Legend award at the 1989 Grammy Awards, for her work in the music industry and was even inducted into the Theater Hall of Fame on January 29Th 2001.
The extent of her award collection just goes to show how amazing Liza is, That she has been dedicated to and the people understand just how fantastic her work is. She has deserved every single award she has and the ones that she will get in the future. I feel very incredibly proud of her.

Monday 22 October 2007

Liza's a Hollywood *STAR*


On September 30, 1991, Liza Minnelli received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. She was honored for her career in theater which, at the time, had spand an amazing 29 years. To date, Liza's career in theater has reached a tremendous 45 years. (Her star is located at 7000 Hollywood Boulevard.) Her star was raised by her fan club, generating funds by having bake sales and car washes. She was joined on Hollywood Boulevard with her half sister Lorna Luft, Lorna's daughter Vanessa and hundreds of fans, reporters and spectators as she was presented with her 'mini star'. Judy Garlands star can be found at 1715 Vine Street and Vincente Minnellis can be found at 6676 Hollywood Boulevard. Here Liza is with Billy Stritch, her good friend and pianist, and posing by herself looking delightfully happy! Who can blame her!

My mother gave me my drive....

Here are a small selection of beautiful photographs of Liza and Judy together from 1946 to 1960.
Liza Minnelli was Judy Garlands first child, Born on March 12 1946, with Vincente Minnelli. Judy went on to have two more children, Lorna, born November 21st 1952 and Joseph (Joey) Luft born March 29th 1955, with producer Sid Luft. Judy had always supported Liza in her career, knowing that it was to happen eventually. She had said to Liza at the very beginning of her career 'Don't sing my songs'. Vincente would later tell her that 'They'll come a time when you'll find it's ok to sing them', and she has, selecting very carefully the songs that she may sing. Liza has always been classed as "Judy Garlands daughter" throughout her career and it has been hard for her to separate herself from her mother. Judy had said, on discussing her own songs 'Be a first rate version of yourself, not a second rate version of anyone else', clearly talking about herself. I personally think Liza has her own style, her own music and her own personality. In my eyes she is Liza Minnelli. Not the daughter of Judy Garland. Sadly, Judy passed away on June 22nd, 1969 in London, England due to drug related causes. Her final resting place is Ferncliff Cemetary and Mausoleum in Hartsdale, New York. Judy will never be forgotten. She lives on through her music and her movies. She brought joy to our hearts and laughter to our lives and continues to do so and we'll always remember that quirky sense of humor. Here I celebrate the time that Liza had with her mother alone.

































But my father gave me my dreams

Here are a selection of beautiful pictures of Liza with her father, Director, Vincente Minnelli from 1947 to the early 1980's. Liza was definetly a daddy's girl as you can tell from these pictures. Liza is the oldest of two children fathered by Vincente. His other Daughter, Christiana Nina was born in 1955 to his second wife, Georgette Magnani. Vincente definetly lives on in liza. Not just through her trademark eyes but in her soul. She has always claimed that 'my mother gave me my drive but my father gave me my dreams', believing that anything is possible as long as you believe in yourself and believe in make believe. Sadly, Vincente passed away on July 26th 1986 in Beverly Hills, California, at the age of 83 from Alzeimers Disease, naturally devastating Liza, Tina nina and his fourth wife, Lee Anderson-Minnelli, not to mention his followers and his dedicated fans who had supported his career spanning over 50 years. Vincente was laid to rest in Burbank, California in Forest Lawn Memorial Park and although he is no longer with us, he will always live on through his movies, his pictures and in our hearts.












Liza's Discography




1990 - The Act - Orginal Broadway Recording (1977)
2005 Results/visible Results - Sony International
2001 - 20th Masters-The Millenium Collection: Best of - A & M Records
2000 - Minnelli on Minnelli Live from the Palace - Angel Records
2004 - When it comes down to it: 1968 - 1977 - Raven Records
1996 Liza Minnelli - Gently - Angel Records
2001 - Liza Minnelli - The Ultimate Collection - Hip-O records
1977 Tropical Nights - Columbia Records
1999 The Rink (Original Broadway cast) - Polydor
1977 New York, New York
1972 Liza with a z - Columbia Records
1992 - Flora the Red Menace - Original Broadway cast recording (1965)
1964 Liza! Liza! - The Complete Capitol Collection- Capitol Records
1987 Liza Minnelli at Carnegie Hall (live) - Telarc
1996 - Cabaret (orginal soundtrack recording 1972) -
2004 The Best Of Liza Minnelli - Columbia/Legacy
1993 - Best Foot Forward - (1963 0ff broadway revival cast)
1995 - Palais des congres des Paris - Charles Aznavour and Liza Minnelli
2002 Liza's Back - J records

2001 Liza Minnelli - The Capitol Years - EMI Records

Sunday 21 October 2007

Snapshots










Liza with her brother, Joey Luft (mid 80's), Liza with Bette Midler (Mid 70's), Liza with Andy warhol, Bianca Jagger and Roy Halston (late 70's) and Liza with Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr while performing 'The Ultimate Event' (1989).

The many faces of...

This is a collage that I designed for Angela, I love the picture of Liza on the phone...So normal!

Friday 12 October 2007

Liza and I




people love the colour blue. They love a certain kind of food, they like walking along the beach. I love Liza Minnelli. Always have, always will. The energy that she gives when she's up on that stage. The amount of heart and soul that goes into every word she sings. She delves into the Characters and she makes sure you understand everything about them. I have never seen a performer give as much to her audience as Liza does. She gives you shivers down your spine, your hair standing up on end. She'll have you crying, Laughing, shocked and dazed with every song she sings. She works her ass off and she deserves every standing ovation and red rose in the world. Her music has always healed me. When I have a bad day I listen to the words she says. It feels like they are about you, that this song is about your life and your situation and you can relate to it. You feel like you're not the only one going through what your going through.


If I'm happy, I'll listen to her happy songs. It moves me, it changes my mind and my mood and she makes me feel better about myself. A lot of people give Liza a bad rap. They see a mirror image of her mother, The Late Judy Garland, and see her problems with Alcohol and drugs, her Marriages and Divorces. We all have problems. Everybody in this world at some point or another has to deal with overwhelming situations but you get through it. You overcome them and you learn from them. Liza has learnt from her mistakes. She has been entertaining the world for over 40 years and she just gets better and better. Liza is a fantastic performer, she's a superstar and she's a human being. She's devoted to charities such as AIDS, helping to find a cure and devote time and money to AMFAR and even recording a song "The Day after that" with 150 members of the public, men women and children, and a 70 piece Orchestra who all turned up for free because they wanted to make a difference. Liza cares. She believes and she deserves a lot of credit.
Nobody will truly understand just how much Liza has changed and altered my life. She has made me feel bold. She has made me strong when I couldn't get up. She's taught me to go with the flow and follow my heart and never ever give up on what you believe in. She made me believe in life again. She made me realise that, OK, crappy things do happen and sometimes you get hurt and want to stay in bed but life is a great thing with so many wonderful opportunities so get your ass out of bed and live it! Be who you want to be. The way she has altered my spirit is truly magnificent. The way she has touched my soul and made me more of a human being and less like a statue. She's gave me an understanding of all things in life, to be courteous and kind and hold your head up high and get on with the day and for that, I will be eternally grateful.