Acclaimed photojournalists Steve Schapiro and Lawrence Schiller — two of the top lens men of the day — were there, commissioned to periodically follow her over the course of her early years in Hollywood. Schapiro and Schiller, who have taken some of the most iconic photographs of the era, captured an intimate, honest, perceptive portrait, as the young actress creates and takes on the role of riveting and charismatic star.
Now, in Barbra: Streisand’s Early Years in Hollywood, 1968-1976, Steve Schapiro and Lawrence Schiller, with contributing authors Patt Morrison and Lawrence Grobel, reveal a Streisand who is enigmatic, determined, exultant, pensive, and, once in a while, still just one happy gal from Brooklyn.
More than 240 images, the majority of which have never been published before, are accompanied by a running conversation between the two photographers that gives insight into Barbra caught up in the pace and urgency of filmmaking. Here are the stories — one night in Kenya, during work on “Up the Sandbox,” Barbra’s manager leaned in during a card game and whispered to Steve, “We’ve got to let her win.” And the quiet moments with family, the banter between takes and on planes and trains, and in hotel rooms, when the “star” was offstage and the true Barbra emerged.
Limited to a total of 1,200 numbered copies signed by Steve Schapiro and Lawrence Schiller, this gorgeously produced book is available as a Collector’s Edition (No. 201-1,200), and also in two Art Editions of 100 copies each (No. 1-100 with a print signed by Steve Schapiro, and No. 101-200 with a print signed by Lawrence Schiller).
Here are the crucial movies of Streisand’s first Hollywood decade: “Funny Girl,” “On a Clear Day You Can See Forever,” “The Way We Were,” “The Owl and the Pussycat,” “Up the Sandbox,” “Funny Lady,” and “A Star Is Born.” And her loves, directors, confidantes, and costars: Elliott Gould, William Wyler, Sydney Pollack, Vincente Minnelli, Cis Corman, Omar Sharif, Kris Kristofferson, and, of course, Robert Redford.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Steve Schapiro is a distinguished journalistic photographer whose pictures have graced the covers of Vanity Fair, Time, Sports Illustrated, Life, Look, Paris Match, and People, and are found in many museum collections. He has published five books, American Edge, Schapiro’s Heroes, The Godfather Family Album, Taxi Driver, and Then and Now; covered the Civil Rights movement, the assassination of Martin Luther King, and many other newsworthy events; and has worked on more than 200 Hollywood motion pictures. His most famous film posters are for “Midnight Cowboy,” “Taxi Driver,” “Parenthood,” “The Godfather Part III,” “Billy Madison,” and “The Man Who Fell to Earth.”
Lawrence Schiller began his career as a photojournalist for Life, Playboy, and Paris Match, among others, photographing some of the most iconic figures of the 1960s, from Lee Harvey Oswald to Robert F. Kennedy, from Ali and Foreman to Redford and Newman. He has written five New York Times bestsellers and collaborated with Norman Mailer on the Pulitzer Prize-winning The Executioner’s Song. He has also directed seven motion pictures and miniseries for television; “The Executioner’s Song” and “Peter the Great” won five Emmys. He is also the founder of The Norman Mailer Center & Writer’s Colony.
In Barbra, Steve Schapiro and Lawrence Schiller get beneath the protective veneer and give us a unique and compelling look at “the real Barbra” in her early years in Hollywood.