Barbra Streisand (b.1942)

Alex Shagin (b. Russia, 1947)
USA, 1997
Bronze, h. 1 ¾ x w. 1 ¾ in.
Cincinnati Skirball Museum, Jewish-American Hall of Fame Collection, gift of Mel and Esther Wacks, Debra Wacks, and Shari Wacks, 2019.7.59

Legendary entertainer Barbra Streisand was born Barbara Joan Streisand in Brooklyn. Displaying talent from a young age, Streisand eagerly pursued an acting career. Her first hit came in 1962 when she played the character of Miss Marmelstein in I Can Get it for You Wholesale on Broadway. Funny Girl (1964), in which Streisand starred as Fanny Brice, was her next Broadway hit. The screen adaptation of Funny Girl (1968), for which she won an Academy Award for Best Actress, was Streisand’s motion picture debut. Streisand starred in such notable films as Hello, Dolly! (1969), The Way We Were (1973), and A Star is Born (1976). Additionally, Streisand directed, co-produced, co-wrote, and starred in the movie Yentl (1983), based on an Isaac Bashevis Singer story about a woman who disguises herself as a man in order to study in a yeshiva. Streisand has won numerous Grammy awards starting with her first solo release, The Barbra Streisand Album (1963), and is among the best-selling recording artists in history. She has earned a slew of awards, including Oscar, Tony, Emmy, Grammy, Golden Globe, CableACE, and Peabody Awards, as well as the Presidential Medal of Freedom. A trailblazing woman in the entertainment industry, Streisand was the first female director recognized with a Kennedy Center Honor and is the only woman who has won the Golden Globe Award for Best Director. Streisand is also a philanthropist; the Streisand Foundation has donated millions of dollars to civil rights, environmental, and other philanthropic causes.