Liza Minnelli

Lore & Background

Minnelli was born at Cedars of Lebanon Hospital in Hollywood to actress and singer Judy Garland and director Vincente Minnelli. She was named after Ira Gershwin's song 'Liza (All the Clouds'll Roll Away)'. Her godparents were Kay Thompson and Ira Gershwin. She made her first film appearance at age three in the final scene of In the Good Old Summertime (1949). In 1961, she moved to New York City, attending the High School of Performing Arts and later Chadwick School.

Her professional stage debut came in 1963 in the Off-Broadway revival of Best Foot Forward, for which she received the Theatre World Award. She won her first Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for Flora the Red Menace (1965), beginning her long collaboration with John Kander and Fred Ebb. She later won another Tony for The Act (1978) and received Special Tony Awards for Liza at the Winter Garden (1974) and Liza's at The Palace.... (2009). On film, her breakthrough was The Sterile Cuckoo (1969), earning an Academy Award nomination, and she won the Oscar for Best Actress for Cabaret (1972).

Minnelli's concert performances at Carnegie Hall in 1979 and 1987 and at Radio City Music Hall in 1991 and 1992 are among her most successful. From 1988 to 1990, she toured with Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr. in Frank, Liza & Sammy: The Ultimate Event. She is known for her renditions of American standards and signature songs including 'New York, New York', 'Cabaret', and 'Maybe This Time'. Her life was profiled in the 2024 documentary Liza: A Truly Terrific Absolutely True Story and her 2026 memoir Kids, Wait Till You Hear This! topped the New York Times Best Seller list.

Reader's Guide

Liza Minnelli's significance lies in her rare achievement of a non-competitive EGOT, reflecting excellence across film, television, music, and theater. Her Academy Award-winning performance in Cabaret (1972) brought her international prominence and remains a defining role. Her collaborations with songwriters John Kander and Fred Ebb produced iconic Broadway and film work. As a live performer, her Carnegie Hall and Radio City Music Hall concerts are recognized among her most successful. She also toured with Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr. in the late 1980s. Her career resurgence on television included a recurring role on Arrested Development. Despite serious health problems in later years, she continued performing in smaller retrospective shows. Her legacy is further cemented by her induction into the French Legion of Honour and her status as one of only 16 people to win an Emmy, Grammy, Tony, and Academy Award.

Did You Know?

• Minnelli's godparents were Kay Thompson and Ira Gershwin.
• She provided backing vocals on My Chemical Romance's album The Black Parade (2006).
• Her 2026 memoir Kids, Wait Till You Hear This! topped the New York Times Best Seller list.
• She performed 'We Are the Champions' with surviving members of Queen at a tribute concert for Freddie Mercury in 1992.

Notable Quotes (Wikiquote)

"I couldn't sing Mama's special songs. I couldn't do them as well. I would rather present a first-rate version of myself than a second-rate version of Mama." — Liza Minnelli "I don't sing them because I couldn't sing them as well as she did. I'd rather be a first-rate version of myself than a second-rate version of anybody." — Liza Minnelli "My mother once told me never be a second-rate version of somebody else when you can be a first-rate version of yourself." — Liza Minnelli "You don’t know how to handle anything today, because you have to go to jail to get some press or fall down drunk." — Liza Minnelli