Saturday, April 24, 2010

Babs Posterized

"Hello Gorgeous!"

Barbra Streisand turned 68 yesterday. I thought we'd celebrate with posters for every movie she ever made. Because we're crazy like that. And it's fun to see someone's complete cinematic history all displayed like so.

Funny Girl (1968) | Hello Dolly (1969) | On a Clear Day You Can See Forever (1970)

The Owl and the Pussycat (1970) | What's Up Doc? (1972) | Up the Sandbox (1972)

The Way We Were (1973) | For Pete's Sake (1974) | Funny Lady (1975)

A Star is Born (1976) | The Main Event (1979) | All Night Long (1981)

Yentl (1983) | Nuts (1987) | The Prince of Tides (1991)

The Mirror Has Two Faces (1996) | Meet the Fockers (2004) | Fockers Sequel (2010)

Babs is still one of the most famous people on the planet but I'm guessing that younger generations have quite the incomplete picture of her career. I'm guessing that that picture hangs in an old fashioned frame and shows the diva in a turtleneck sweater. Somehow her expression conveys stifling self regard, political activism and mega-wealth all at once.

But when I think of Babs, I laugh. Not at her but with her. Back in the day -- before most of us were attending the movies regularly (myself included) or even alive yet (myself not included) -- she was a corker of a comic actress. She could also swing dramatic as memorably as she could change keys. But if you peruse the posters above it seems clear that her giant movie stardom shrank just as soon as she swung dramatic in a permanent sort of way.

Questions for you
  • How many of her 17 pictures have you seen?
  • Isn't it weird that major stars never used to take supporting roles and now they all do?
  • What's your favorite Streisand performance?
Babs is making a now rare return to the big screen this winter in the Meet the Fockers sequel. Will you see it?

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