Minnelli's first film appearance was at the age of three in the final scene of the 1949 musical In the Good Old Summertime, starring her mother and Van Johnson. Minnelli started performing at age 16, in 1963, in an Off-Broadway revival of the musical Best Foot Forward, for which she received good notices. The next year, her mother invited Minnelli to perform with her at the London Palladium. The audience loved her, launching her musical career. She returned to Broadway at 19, and won a 1965 Tony Award for Flora the Red Menace. Minnelli would also receive Tony Awards for The Act in 1978 and a special Tony in 1974. She was nominated in 1984 for The Rink but lost to her costar, Chita Rivera.
The film The Sterile Cuckoo (1969), in which Minnelli starred as a love-seeking teenage misfit, garnered the young actress her first Academy Award nomination. In 1972, Minnelli won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her role as Sally Bowles in the movie version of Cabaret, along with Joel Grey who won an Oscar reprising his role from the original Broadway production (that of the Emcee).
Minnelli has the distinction of being one of the few Academy Award winners whose parents are both Academy Award nominees. She has also won an Emmy Award for the 1972 TV special Liza with a Z. Minnelli received a 1990 Grammy Legend Award. She received Golden Globe Awards for Cabaret and for the TV movie A Time to Live.
Minnelli, like her mother, is known for her powerful vocal style, as in her trademark songs "Cabaret" and "Theme from New York, New York". Minnelli's original version of the latter, for the film in which she was a co-star with Robert DeNiro, preceded Frank Sinatra's successful cover version (for his Trilogy album), by two years.
After her performance as leading lady to Dudley Moore in 1981's Arthur, Minnelli made fewer, and fewer successful, film appearances.
She returned to Broadway in 1997, taking over the title role in the musical Victor/Victoria, replacing Julie Andrews. In his review, New York Times critic Ben Brantley commented, "her every stage appearance is perceived as a victory of show-business stamina over psychic frailty... She asks for love so nakedly and earnestly, it seems downright vicious not to respond."
Following her 2002 wedding to David Gest, Minnelli and Gest signed with the American cable network VH1 to star in their own reality series, but production of the series was cancelled at the last minute.
In 2004 and 2005 she appeared as a recurring guest star on the critically acclaimed TV sitcom Arrested Development as the lover of sexually and socially awkward Buster Bluth.
On January 1, 2006, she sang "New York, New York" at the second inauguration of New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg. Other famous performances were at the 1978 Studio 54 party honoring New York City's revival, at which a guest was Mayor Ed Koch; the reopening of the Statue of Liberty on July 4, 1986; and at a 2001 New York Mets baseball game that was the metro area's first major sporting event after the September 11 attacks.
In 2013, she guest-starred on the NBC musical drama Smash, where she performed the number A Love Letter From the Times. She also reprised her role in the fourth season of Arrested Development.
God Bless The Child
Liza Minnelli Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Them that's not shall lose
So the Bible says, and it still is new-ews
Mama may have and papa may have
But God bless the child that's got his own
And the strong get more
While the weak ones fade
Mama may have and papa may have
But God bless the child that's got his own
That's got his own
And when you got money
You got a-lots of friends
All hangin' 'round your door
But when the money's gone
And all your spendin' ends
They won't hang around any more-ore
Rich relations may give you
A crust of bread and such
Sayin' help, go on help help yourself
But don't take too much
Mama may have and papa may have
But God bless the child that's got his own
That's got his own
That's got his own own
Mama may have and papa may ha-ave
But God bless the child who can stand up and say
He's got his ow-ow-ow-own
Liza Minnelli's song "God Bless The Child" is a stunningly honest and accurate depiction of the way society operates. It presents a vivid description of the survival of the fittest mentality which dominates the world. The lines "Them that's got shall get, Them that's not shall lose, So the Bible says, and it still is new-ews" are particularly poignant. The lyrics also discuss how people who have wealth and money are more likely to attract friends and those friends can be lost as soon as the individual has lost their wealth. In contrast, those who are able to take care of themselves and have their own resources are given a special kind of blessing from God.
The chorus – "Mama may have and papa may have, But God bless the child that's got his own, That's got his own" is the heart of the song. The song explains how an individual who is financially independent is blessed and is not ruled by others. They are able to stand up for themselves and their rights to their own resources. Liza Minnelli's powerful and emotional voice adds to the overall meaning of the song. This song's message has remained extremely relevant, as it is still true in today's world that those who have resources are blessed while those who don't struggle to keep up.
Line by Line Meaning
Them that's got shall get
Those who already have wealth and resources will continue to accumulate more
Them that's not shall lose
Those who do not have wealth and resources will continue to be at a disadvantage and miss out on opportunities
So the Bible says, and it still is new-ews
This belief has been around for a long time and still holds true today
Mama may have and papa may have
One's parents may have wealth and resources
But God bless the child that's got his own
But it is a blessing to have a sense of independence and self-sufficiency
And the strong get more
Those who are already in a position of power and influence will continue to gain more power and influence
While the weak ones fade
Those who are already disadvantaged will continue to be left behind
Empty pockets don't ever make the gra-ade
Being poor does not make one successful or respected in society
That's got his own
Having independence and self-sufficiency is valuable
And when you got money
When one has wealth and resources
You got a-lots of friends
They attract many people who are only interested in their money
All hangin' 'round your door
These people are always trying to get something from the wealthy person
But when the money's gone
However, when the wealth and resources are depleted
And all your spendin' ends
And there is no more to spend
They won't hang around any more-ore
These so-called friends will abandon the wealthy person
Rich relations may give you
Even family members who are wealthy may offer some help
A crust of bread and such
But they may not offer much assistance
But don't take too much
They may warn against taking advantage of their generosity
But God bless the child that's got his own
But it is still more admirable to be self-sufficient and independent
That's got his own own
Having independence and self-sufficiency is valuable
Mama may have and papa may ha-ave
One's parents may have wealth and resources
But God bless the child who can stand up and say
But it is a blessing to have the ability to say
He's got his ow-ow-ow-own
That one is independent and self-sufficient
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Royalty Network, Spirit Music Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Arthur Herzog, Billie Holiday
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Steven Macchia
Fabulous! version. She truly made it her own.
Kim Quinn
No forcing her range at. All. Just pours forth, like gold.
Emilio Nassar
Tom....un gran cantante y todo un Showman.excelentes vídeos.
MultiLMarcelo
Love it !
Felipe R.
BREATH TAKING!!!!!
pherdeenand
Величайшая!
Myriemah Bethy
L'une des meilleures chanteuses au monde...
Marcia P.Morgado
DIVINA!!!!
Noe Berengena
23 years old here. This was just after "The Sterile Cuckoo" movie apparently.
Her Pookie Adams was a dramatic tour de force, playing am awkward college student, effusing a non-stop bravado while filled with inner conflicts.
César Adrián Herrera
I think this is the song she killed it the most.
Prefer the french liza with a z concert where she almost passed out reaching that note.