Barbra Streisand

After her splashy debut on Broadway in 1962's I Can Get It For You Wholesale, Barbra Streisand played entertainer Fanny Brice in the 1964 Broadway musical Funny Girl. Her 1965 television special, My Name is Barbra, won five Emmy awards, and in 1968 she won the best actress Oscar for the film version of Funny Girl. She went on to become one of the world's best-selling recording artists, with more gold records than any other performer. A legendary case of stage fright kept Streisand from publicly performing for over 20 years, but she stayed on top of the charts and continued to make movies, including writing, directing, producing and starring in 1983's Yentl and 1991's The Prince of Tides (with Nick Nolte). In 1986 she began singing in public again, and in 1998 she married actor James Brolin. While not making movies or singing, Streisand kicks up dust in the political arena as an outspoken Democrat.

Extra credit: Streisand shared the 1968 best actress Oscar with Katharine Hepburn, who was honored for The Lion in Winter... Streisand won a second Oscar as a co-writer (with Paul Williams) of the song "Evergreen" from the 1977 film A Star is Born... She was married to actor Elliot Gould from 1963 until their divorce in 1971. Their son, Jason Gould (b. 1966), is also an actor.