Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1514720
77 S AG - A F T R A S PEC I A L IS S U E 2 0 24 S A G A F T R A .O R G O nce in a lifetime, a performer comes along who redefines what's possible with artistry and entertainment. Those who witnessed Barbra Streisand's motion picture debut in Funny Girl encountered a talent who was instantly rewiring the expectations of American audiences. Her persona defied all existing templates available to young female actors of the period, leaving theater and cinema- goers alike dazzled by extraordinary vocals, remarkable physicality and truly unconventional comedic choices. With a career spanning over six decades, the SAG Life Achievement Award honoree has transcended profession, genre and artistic medium in a way that can only be described as uniquely spectacular. And even as an established icon, Streisand continues to prove that there are no limits when it comes to the boundless creative spirit. Eternally regarded as a singing sensation, when Streisand started out, she wanted to be an actor, not a singer, her professional longing only deepening when she saw The Diary of Anne Frank, the first Broadway play she attended. Just 14 years old at the time and inspired by Anne Frank actress Susan Strasberg, Streisand ventured to her local library to seek out biographies of famous female stage actors — Sarah Bernhardt, a particular favorite. Having a showstopping voice even as a teen, she decided that her singing ability would be the tool she'd leverage to pursue her primary goal — dramatic acting. "Ever since I was a young girl sitting in the Loew's Kings Theatre in Brooklyn, I dreamed of being one of those actresses I saw on the screen," Streisand said. "The movies were a portal to a world I could only imagine. Even though I was an unlikely candidate, somehow my dream came true." At age 18, Streisand entered — and won — a talent contest at a Manhattan gay bar. With her unemployment insurance depleted, she'd entered with the hopes of winning enough money to pay rent, and in her memoir, My Name is Barbra, Streisand recounts how she used the techniques she learned in her acting classes while singing to make it interesting for her. Nine years later, Streisand would go on to win her first Academy Award for her role in the film version of Funny Girl, an honor she — a newcomer — shared with cinema icon Katharine Hepburn, as both performers received exactly 3,030 votes. Despite the success, Streisand felt the impact of her mother's critical treatment. In many interviews, Streisand oen remarked that her mother didn't want her pursuing show business as a career, made demeaning remarks about her performances and appearance, and never told her that she loved her. "I just couldn't please her," Streisand said in a 2014 interview with Chrissy Iley for Weekend Magazine. "But I owe her my career. It was painful on the way up. I was always trying to prove to her that I was worthy of being somebody."