Turning 75, Bette Midler Is Unstoppable!

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The Saxon
At 75, Bette Midler is not calm
By Magictr
December 1, 2020

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Bette Midler is unstoppable. The corona pandemic may have paralyzed her live performances, but the singer and actress has a lot to say. More than two million followers hang on her lips on Twitter – and that’s where the “Divine Miss M”, who turns 75 on Tuesday, lets off steam without a break.

The star posts daily on social media, while the declared critic Donald Trumps fires against the US President and his political leadership. “I fervently hope not to have to see his ugly face in my life,” wrote Midler in mid-November on the short message service. And that is one of their harmless slogans, next to swear words like “supreme idiot” and “rat bastard”. Midler hailed the election victory of Democrat Joe Biden as an “unforgettable moment in our history” after those “terrible years” under Trump.

Midler recently used tweets to cheer on the Black Lives Matter movement and the protests against police violence and racism. Because of the corona pandemic, as a precaution, she did not take to the streets herself. All the more energy she put into online activism, also for her long-standing heart project – the “New York Restoration Project”. 25 years ago Midler started the campaign to beautify dirty gardens and parks in New York with volunteers. They clean up green spaces, plant trees, and create community gardens.

The park around the corner and access to the great outdoors helped her a lot during the pandemic, Midler said on the US morning show “Good Day New York” at the end of October. She feels “like in heaven” when she can sit under a tree.

But she usually twirls around on stage and in front of the camera. The “divine Miss M”, as she has been called since her record debut in 1972, dances, sings, acts and does comedy. The ex-blonde, who is only 1.55 meters tall, catapulted herself with the rock opera “Tommy” and the album “The Divine Miss M.” hit the world stage, since then she has recorded over a dozen albums.

After Broadway appearances and comedy successes, Midler made her screen debut with a character role. “The Rose” (1979), in which she played the rise and end of rock and blues singer Janis Joplin, earned her an Oscar nomination. As a cheeky blonde in hits like Down And Out In Beverly Hills, Ruthless People “and” Big Business “she counted in the 80s Hollywood’s top earners.

At the side of Danny DeVito, she shone in “Get Shorty”, with Diane Keaton and Goldie Hawn became a vengeful wife in “The First Wives’ Club”. In the horror-comedy “The Stepford Wives” she was the cross driver among good wives.

In real life, Midler has been married to the German-born performance artist Martin von Haselberg for over 35 years. Her daughter Sophie (34) made her acting debut in Woody Allen’s “Irrational Man” (2015).

Midler’s collection of Grammys, Emmys, and Golden Globes was joined by the Tony Theater Prize in 2017. On New York’s Broadway, she won the Best Actress in a Musical award for the title role in “Hello, Dolly!” “Thanks to all of the jurors – whom I really dated a lot of,” Midler quipped in an acclaimed acceptance speech.

Because of the Corona crisis, the Broadway stages have been closed for months. But at the age of 75, Midler is already planning for the time after that. You can feel your age, the star recently admitted in an interview with “Good Day New York”. Her voice is a little “rusty”, but she is practicing singing and playing the guitar again. “I think I can do it again,” said Midler.

The fans can also hope for another cinema appearance of the “Divine Miss M”. She is planning the comedy “Family Jewels” with her “The Devil’s Club” colleagues Goldie Hawn (75) and Diane Keaton (74). The project was announced in February, the start of shooting is not yet known. It’s about three women who were all married to the same man once.