Happy Birthday Suitless: Cher

There are some actresses who win an Oscar that only a few years before they're honored, many probably scoffed at their ever being considered.  Sandra Bullock and Halle Berry come to mind.  So does Cher.  She had a rather loose reputation and was known for her cheesy self-titled variety show with her husband Sony Bono and string of pop hits.  But in the course of only five years, she would surprise everyone and show that you can win an Oscar and go on to show off your forty-something buttocks in a revealing outfit while tramping around on an aircraft carrier singing "If I Could Turn Back Time."

Cher decided in her early 30s that she wanted to act in films.  And with each subsequent movie, she kept impressing critics.  While she starred in a road movie written by Bono when she was very young, she didn't make her proper debut until 1982 in the Robert Altman film Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean playing a member of the actor's fan club reuniting with friends.  Her reviews were solid and her next part in well-received Mike Nicholas' hit Silkwood opposite Meryl Streep would garner her an Oscar nod.  In her third film Mask, she played the mother of disfigured boy.  It was hit and put her on Oscar's short-list, but she'd get snubbed for performances in more prestigious fare.

But her momentum was in full force and, in 1987, she rolled out three high-profile films.  She played one of The Witches of Eastwick opposite Jack Nicholson, which was a blockbuster.  She portrayed an attorney who falls in love with the Suspect, that also bowed to decent numbers.  The icing on the cake, or, more precisely, the parmesan on the pizza pie, was her Loretta Castorini at the end of the year in Moonstruck.  Loretta was engaged to Danny Aiello, but in love with his brother Nicolas Cage.  It's an endearing, iconic performance, and, though she was up against the formidable Glenn Close as batshit crazy Alex Forrest in Fatal Attraction, AMPAS couldn't "snap out of" the spell she put them under.

Other entertainers who firmly established themselves as singers and then went on to Oscar recognition for acting ability (whether nomination or win) include (but not limited to): Peggy Lee, Barbra Streisand, Liza Minelli, Diana Ross, Ronee Blakley, Bette Midler, Queen Latifah, and Jennifer Hudson.

From there, it was never going to be quite as golden cinematically.  Three years later, she rounded up rising stars Winona Ryder and little Christina Ricci for the hit Mermaids.  She would take a much longer break before engaging the bomb Faithful opposite 1970s wash-up Ryan O'Neal.  Tea with Mussolini showcased her screen legends and she played herself in Stuck on You; she wouldn't have her next major role until 2010's Burlesque.  Thanks to her pull overseas, the Showgirls-without-the-camp was a harmless, but unmemorable affair.

Cher is one of those rare stars who knows how to work a crowd, as well as the press junket.  She's fun-loving and candid; whenever she's on Letterman, it's generally good TV.  She has a legion of devoted fans and has been incredibly influential in the music world.  She has been putting out albums and/or touring consistently since the mid-1960s.  Bitch gets props for being such a work horse.  Tomorrow, she turns 66.

Check Out Other Happy Birthday Suit(lesses):

Jennifer Aniston     Ellen Barkin     Drew Barrymore     Annette Bening     Jessica Biel     Juliette Binoche     Cate Blanchett     Helena Bonham Carter     Cher     Glenn Close     Claires Danes     Geena Davis     Kirsten Dunst     Jennifer Garner     Jennifer Grey     Kate Hudson     Holly Hunter     Angelina Jolie     Ashley Judd     Keira Knightley     Jessica Lange     Andie MacDowell     Eva Mendes     Rosie O'Donnell     Lena Olin     Michelle Pfeiffer     Natalie Portman     Emma Thompson     Uma Thurman     Rachel Weisz     Debra Winger     Renée Zellweger

Jennifer Aniston #1     Nicole Kidman #1     Rachel McAdams     Julia Roberts     Winona Ryder