Liza Minnelli

Liza May Minnelli is an American actress, singer, and dancer known for her commanding stage presence and powerful alto singing voice. Over her multi-decade career, she has achieved widespread recognition across theater, film, television, and music. Her accolades include an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, an Emmy Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and four Tony Awards. She is also among the select group of performers awarded a non-competitive EGOT after receiving an honorary Grammy Award, and she is a Knight of the French Legion of Honour.

Born on March 12, 1946, in Hollywood, Minnelli is the daughter of actress and singer Judy Garland and film director Vincente Minnelli. Named after an Ira Gershwin song, she grew up with half-siblings from both parents' subsequent marriages. Her early exposure to the entertainment industry included an uncredited film appearance at age three in In the Good Old Summertime (1949). In 1961, she moved to New York City to pursue her education and career, attending the High School of Performing Arts and Chadwick School.

Minnelli began performing professionally on stage in 1963 in the Off-Broadway revival of Best Foot Forward, winning a Theatre World Award. She quickly transitioned to Broadway, winning her first Tony Award at age 19 for Flora the Red Menace (1965). This production marked her first collaboration with songwriters John Kander and Fred Ebb. She later won another Tony Award for The Act (1978), earned a nomination for The Rink (1984), and received Special Tony Awards for Liza at the Winter Garden (1974) and Liza's at The Palace... (2009).

Parallel to her stage career, Minnelli built a prolific recording history. Beginning as a nightclub singer, she recorded traditional pop and show tunes for Capitol Records in the 1960s before signing with A&M and Columbia Records. In 1989, she collaborated with the Pet Shop Boys on the electronic dance album Results. She received the Grammy Legend Award in 1990, earned a Grammy nomination for her 1996 jazz album Gently, and released the album Confessions in 2010.

On film, Minnelli gained critical recognition for her breakthrough performance in The Sterile Cuckoo (1969), earning an Academy Award nomination. She achieved international prominence playing Sally Bowles in Cabaret (1972), winning the Academy Award for Best Actress. She subsequently starred in films such as Lucky Lady (1975), A Matter of Time (1976), New York, New York (1977), and the hit comedy Arthur (1981).

Throughout her career, Minnelli made extensive television appearances, ranging from concert specials like Liza with a "Z" to a recurring guest role on Arrested Development. She also established herself as a major concert attraction at Carnegie Hall and Radio City Music Hall, and toured with Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr. Despite facing severe health challenges, including viral encephalitis in 2000, she continued performing, with her life profiled in a 2024 documentary and her 2026 memoir Kids, Wait Till You Hear This!