Joan Crawford was undoubtedly one of the most popular actresses in the 60s. She appeared on “The Merv Griffin Show” after her performance in the psychological thriller, “Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?” Crawford received a standing ovation from the fans in the audience. And that was just the tip of the iceberg in terms of her impact on Hollywood.
Interestingly enough, though the award-winning actress was a fan favorite, this was far from the truth when it came to her castmates. A truth that was revealed in the tell-all book, “Mommie Dearest.” Actors having beef with each other is by no means new in Hollywood, but Joan Crawford attracted a lot of drama in her career.
Dionne Warwick
This next statistic is outstanding. With 69 songs on the Billboard Top 100 for over thirty years, Warwick is second to Aretha Franklin as the most-charted female singer of all time. Along with her award-winning hits, Warwick had plenty of collaborations with big names.
When she made her appearance on "The Dean Martin Show," she decided against performing one of her songs. Instead, she showed her other talent, acting, as she performed a comedy skit alongside Dean Martin. Not many singers have been able to do it better than Dionne Warwick. If there are, there are only a select few.
Zsa Zsa Gabor
Five years after Zsa Zsa Gabor was crowned Miss Hungary, she moved to the United States. Her European elegance and unique style would help ensure she became a sought-after actress. Naturally, she became heavily typecast and would find a variety of roles working on stage, television, and of course, the big screen.
She soon became a frequent guest on late-night talk shows, and of course, found her way into tabloid magazines. Gabor was known for her extravagant lifestyle and many relationships. In fact, she was married a total of nine times! That is a pretty remarkable statistic, even by Hollywood standards!
Bette Midler
In his final show, Johnny Carson welcomed Robin Williams and Bette Midler as his featured guests on May 21st, 1992. A memorable night in which Carson had guests join in, Midler made it all the more memorable. It was an emotional night for all, and Midler serenaded the man of the hour with a number of songs.
Carson's final "The Tonight Show" segment was so captivating; it would go on to win an Emmy Award. And let's face it: when you have the incredible talent of Better Midler and Robin Williams at your disposal for your final episode, it is bound to rake in the viewers and be an emotional climax.
Joan Rivers
Often, talk-show hosts and comedians say something so often; they become synonymous with it. For Joan Rivers, that was: "Can we talk?" The line originated from her time as a stand-up comedian; Rivers used it instead of saying, "Let's be honest." And can we talk? There was nothing about Joan Rivers that wasn't iconic.
She navigated her way to the comedic roots of topics that seemed hard to discuss. Truth be told, the late-night show host didn't even realize she was saying it so much until her audiences started repeating it back to her! Can we talk? There have been better catchphrases in the world of TV.