Bette Midler, 1945

An award-winning singer, actress, film producer, and comedienne.

Born and raised in Hawaii, Bette Midler was named after the actress Bette Davis. She was attracted to music from a young age, with people gathering to listen outside of her home when she was singing in the shower. Midler worked in a pineapple factory, studied a year at the University of Hawaii, and played a small role in the film “Hawaii”, which allowed her to earn enough money to move to New York at the age of 21.
 
While singing in a gay bathhouse, she adopted the alter ego “The Divine Miss M”. It became the title of her debut album, a beginning of her journey towards becoming one of the bestselling female singers of the US. At the age of 34, she starred in her first film, “The Rose”. Her career was rich with over 15 albums and 20 movies, Grammy Awards, Golden Globes, Emmys and a Tony.
 
As the highest-paid actress of her time, she was aware of the bias against women in show business and co-founded “All Girl” female-focused production company. With co-founder Bonnie Bruckheimer, their business motto was “We hold a grudge”.
 
Just before turning 40, she married artist Martin von Haselberg in Las Vegas with an Elvis impersonator conducting the ceremony.
 

More Interesting Anecdotes:

• She paid tribute to successful women in her works: releasing albums in honor of Rosemary Clooney and Peggy Lee, and a compilation of covers of the girl bands of her youth.
• When growing up, she and her siblings were the only Jewish kids in the neighborhood.
• Her husband gave up his job to support his wife’s career.
• Their daughter Sophie is named after singer Sophie Tucker.
• She turned down the lead role in the musical comedy “Sister Act”, which instead played by Whoopi Goldberg.
• She was deeply influenced by the book “The Feminine Mystique” by Betty Friedan. The text is questioning the idea that women’s fulfillment was only to be a housewife-mother.
• She is politically active on Twitter.
• In 1995 she founded the nonprofit New York Restoration Project (NYRP) to revitalize neglected neighborhood parks.