Marilyn Michaels

Marilyn Michaels
Marilyn Michaels White Top Headshot
Background information
Birth name	Marilyn Sternberg aka Toni Michaels (1961)
Born	February 26, 1943 (1943-02-26) (age 68) New York City, New York, USA
Genres	Pop, Standards, Jazz, Classical, Comedy, Acting, Dialectician
Occupations	Singer, Comedienne, Fine Painter, Writer, Composer, Producer
Labels	Debbie Records, Warner Bros. Records, ABC Paramount, MEW Records Marilyn Michaels Productions
Website	Marilyn Michaels.com

Marilyn Michaels (born February 26, 1943) is an American comedic actress, impressionist and singer. She auditioned for and won an RCA recording contract, singing the follow-up song to Ray Peterson's "Tell Laura I Love Her", entitled, "Tell Tommy I Miss Him". She later won contracts with Warner Bros. Records and ABC Paramount.^{[citation needed]}

Career

Marilyn Sternberg was born in Manhattan and attended the High School of Music and Art as a music major, but in her sophomore year she switched to art.^[1] Michaels began her career singing with her mother, Fraydele Oysher, when she was seven. At the age of 15 she was soloist in her father's choir, the late Metropolitan Opera basso, Harold Sternberg. The cantor was her uncle, Moishe Oysher. In 1961 she changed her name to Toni Michaels.

She began singing in Catskills Resorts and clubs, starring at the world famous Copa, and made her first television appearances on such shows as The Hollywood Palace, The Ed Sullivan Show and The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson.

She caught the eye of composer Jule Styne and was chosen to play the role of Fannie Brice in the national touring company of Funny Girl, while Barbra Streisand was still playing it on Broadway. She was later a repertory player in ABC televisions' The Kopycats. Her character portrayals, impressions and singing have been on The Love Boat, Regis and Kathie Lee, Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous, The Today Show, 'The Dean Martin Show, The Red Skelton Show, The Jonathan Winters Show, The Ed Sullivan Show, Sullivan On Broadway Special, Name of the Game (with Sammy Davis Jr.), The Flip Wilson Show, The Mike Douglas Show, The Merv Griffin Show, The Howard Stern Show, and The Hollywood Squares.

She has appeared with Don Rickles in Las Vegas and at the Westbury Music Fair, and starred with Rich Little in the National Campaign for Diet 7UP. That was followed with a Playboy pictorial, Prime Mime, in August 1982. It featured Marilyn as six different characters, Dolly Parton, Bo Derek, Barbra Streisand, Lily Tomlin, Julie Andrews and Bette Midler.

In 1991, Marilyn starred in the hit show, Catskills On Broadway. She followed with her own Radio Show, The Broadway Hour and her own musical show at Harrah's in Atlantic City, Broadway Ballyhoo. Known as a "triple threat performer" she has hosted the comedy stand up, Girls Night Out for Lifetime, CNBC's Talk Live and the WLIW Awards in Excellence Gala.

She won a Soap Opera Digest Award for her guest appearance on the soaper, One Life to Live. Her rendition of Donna Summer and Barbra Streisand singing via split screen on an NBC Award show has become a cult favorite.^{[citation needed]} She has appeared with the Philadelphia and Long Island Symphonies, as well narrator with multiple personalities in the Emmy winning Reading Rainbow for PBS (Gregory the Terrible Eater) and the audio book, Frankly Scarlett, I Do Give A Damn (Harper Collins)

She sings in six languages and has guest starred on the PBS special Another Mitzvah, as well as performed in concert at Town Hall, The Sylvia and Danny Kaye Playhouse, and theaters throughout the US and England.

Personal life

Marilyn was married to Isaac Robbins, an interior designer, in 1968, They divorced in 1970. In 1982, she married surgeon Dr. Peter Wilk, they have one son, Mark Edward. They divorced in 2001. She married retired attorney, Steven B. Portnoff on October 2, 2008.

Awards

Title
Outer Critic Circle Award
Drama League Award
Catskills On Broadway

Commercials and endorsements

Name
Diet Seven Up Campaign
Gilette Cricket Lighter
Burlington (animation)
Olivor's Stores
Channel Lumber

Recordings

Title
The Moishe Oysher Chanukah Party (soloist Age 14)
Tell Tommy I Miss Him (Single, RCA Victor, Hugo and Luigi, producers)
Fraydele Oysher and Her Daughter Marilyn: Yiddish Soul
Marilyn Michaels, The Fantastic and Exciting Debut (Warner Bros. Records)
Marilyn Michaels (ABC Paramount)
Don’t Count The Days ( Bachrach/ David single, introduced ABC Paramount)
The Times They Are A Changin (ABC Paramount)
Marilyn Michaels: Voices (MEW Records)
Marilyn Michaels: A Mother's Voice (MEW Records)
The Oysher Heritage: Moishe Oysher, Fraydele Oysher, Marilyn Michaels
Marilyn Michaels, Wonderful At Last (2008 ) (Marilyn Michaels Productions)

References

1. ^ Official Marilyn Michaels webpage

External links

• Marilyn Michaels official website
• Marilyn Michaels on Youtube.com
• Marilyn Michaels on Amazon.com CD's and memorabilia
• Marilyn Michaels on ITUNES

Great Female Singers 11

• Marilyn Michaels on IMDB
• Marilyn Michaels on Playbill.com (by Andrew Gans)

Persondata
Name	Michaels, Marilyn
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	February 26, 1943
Place of birth
Date of death
Place of death