Cher... Special
Encyclopedia
Cher... Special was a one-off television special from American singer/actress Cher
that aired on ABC
on April 3, 1978 at 9:00 pm ET/PT and was recorded at ABC
Studios. Cher ... Special was a huge ratings success for ABC and it was ranked among the Top 10 most watched programs of the week. In the Fall of 1978, it was honored with a technical Emmy Award
for "Best Achievement in Lighting Direction". It also received an Emmy nomination for "Best Art Direction for a Comedy-Variety or Musical Special" and Dolly Parton
was also nominated for an Emmy in the category of "Best Supporting Actress in a Variety or Musical Special".
, Rod Stewart
& The Tubes
. As the show begins, there is a spotlight on the floor and "Georgia Holt" voice is heard calling her young daughter: "Cher? Cher? Cher, is that you? I thought I asked you not to mess up my record albums." As Cher steps into the spotlight, she is made up to look like a younger version of herself with her hair in pigtails. Taking a page from real life, the young Cher sits on the floor and tells her mother that she is upset because she is not blonde and she says that all the pretty girls have blonde hair and blue eyes. Georgia tells her daughter that she is beautiful and someday she will realize just how special she really is. Cher tells her mom that she will try to understand and explains that she got into the record albums so that she could learn the songs from "West Side Story
" for school. When Georgia asks Cher what part she is going to play, Cher replies, "all of them".
Cher stands up, looks directly at the camera, and says, "Ladies & Gentlemen, for tonight’s entertainment, I am proud to present West Side Story. I will be playing all the parts. Thank you." And for the next fifteen minutes, Cher singing and dancing to a medley of well-known songs from the musical. Cher amazed the television audience by playing both the male and female characters.
Other segments of Cher...Special included guests Dolly Parton
and Rod Stewart
cast as neighbors in an apartment building, performing their hit songs "Two Doors Down
" (Parton) and "Hot Legs
" (Stewart). Cher and Dolly having a conversation by reciting lyrics from pop songs, and Cher working by day in a boring secretarial job but getting funky on the dance floor at night in the discos. Even Laverne, Cher's most famous character from the early days of "The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour
", stops by for a quick chat to give Cher some words of wisdom that only Laverne could deliver. The final segment was a big production number with a medley of songs performed by Cher, Dolly Parton, and The Tubes that has to be seen to be believed. Described as a "Musical Battle to Save Cher's Soul Medley". The Tubes try to lead her astray to the dark world of evil and sin while Dolly Parton and several gospel singers try to save her and show her the light.
Cher...Special concludes with Cher saying, "Momma, I'm still here. I've got the same hair, the same bumpy nose and vampire teeth. But you were right, I feel better about myself now". But some things never change...this time it's Cher's nine-year-old daughter Chastity who asks, "Mom, have you been into my records again?" Cher proves that she truly has come full circle when she says, "my children Chastity and Elijah both have blonde hair. I guess they don't have the advantages of having black hair, but nobody told them it was going to be easy." Then, she performs the song that started it all: When You Wish Upon A Star. As the final credits roll by, Cher's young son Elijah Blue Allman
comes out and sits on her lap.
as a special contents. A number of the special's individual segments (particularly Cher and Parton's "song lyric conversation") have appeared numerous times on YouTube.
Cher
Cher is an American recording artist, television personality, actress, director, record producer and philanthropist. Referred to as the Goddess of Pop, she has won an Academy Award, a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, three Golden Globes and a Cannes Film Festival Award among others for her work in...
that aired on ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
on April 3, 1978 at 9:00 pm ET/PT and was recorded at ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
Studios. Cher ... Special was a huge ratings success for ABC and it was ranked among the Top 10 most watched programs of the week. In the Fall of 1978, it was honored with a technical Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
for "Best Achievement in Lighting Direction". It also received an Emmy nomination for "Best Art Direction for a Comedy-Variety or Musical Special" and Dolly Parton
Dolly Parton
Dolly Rebecca Parton is an American singer-songwriter, author, multi-instrumentalist, actress and philanthropist, best known for her work in country music. Dolly Parton has appeared in movies like 9 to 5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Steel Magnolias and Straight Talk...
was also nominated for an Emmy in the category of "Best Supporting Actress in a Variety or Musical Special".
The show
The show featured Dolly PartonDolly Parton
Dolly Rebecca Parton is an American singer-songwriter, author, multi-instrumentalist, actress and philanthropist, best known for her work in country music. Dolly Parton has appeared in movies like 9 to 5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Steel Magnolias and Straight Talk...
, Rod Stewart
Rod Stewart
Roderick David "Rod" Stewart, CBE is a British singer-songwriter and musician, born and raised in North London, England and currently residing in Epping. He is of Scottish and English ancestry....
& The Tubes
The Tubes
The Tubes are a San Francisco-based rock band, whose 1975 debut album included the hit single, "White Punks on Dope". During its first fifteen years or so, the band's live performances combined quasi-pornography with wild satires of media, consumerism, and politics...
. As the show begins, there is a spotlight on the floor and "Georgia Holt" voice is heard calling her young daughter: "Cher? Cher? Cher, is that you? I thought I asked you not to mess up my record albums." As Cher steps into the spotlight, she is made up to look like a younger version of herself with her hair in pigtails. Taking a page from real life, the young Cher sits on the floor and tells her mother that she is upset because she is not blonde and she says that all the pretty girls have blonde hair and blue eyes. Georgia tells her daughter that she is beautiful and someday she will realize just how special she really is. Cher tells her mom that she will try to understand and explains that she got into the record albums so that she could learn the songs from "West Side Story
West Side Story
West Side Story is an American musical with a script by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and choreographed by Jerome Robbins...
" for school. When Georgia asks Cher what part she is going to play, Cher replies, "all of them".
Cher stands up, looks directly at the camera, and says, "Ladies & Gentlemen, for tonight’s entertainment, I am proud to present West Side Story. I will be playing all the parts. Thank you." And for the next fifteen minutes, Cher singing and dancing to a medley of well-known songs from the musical. Cher amazed the television audience by playing both the male and female characters.
Other segments of Cher...Special included guests Dolly Parton
Dolly Parton
Dolly Rebecca Parton is an American singer-songwriter, author, multi-instrumentalist, actress and philanthropist, best known for her work in country music. Dolly Parton has appeared in movies like 9 to 5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Steel Magnolias and Straight Talk...
and Rod Stewart
Rod Stewart
Roderick David "Rod" Stewart, CBE is a British singer-songwriter and musician, born and raised in North London, England and currently residing in Epping. He is of Scottish and English ancestry....
cast as neighbors in an apartment building, performing their hit songs "Two Doors Down
Two Doors Down
"Two Doors Down" was a song written and performed by Dolly Parton, which provided a 1978 U.S. country and pop hit for her. The song was sung from the perspective of a woman who has just broken up with her boyfriend and is debating attending a party two doors down the hall from her apartment...
" (Parton) and "Hot Legs
Hot Legs
"Hot Legs" is a single by Rod Stewart. It was written by Gary Grainger and Rod Stewart. Stewart included the song on his 1977 album Foot Loose & Fancy Free. The 1978 single performed moderately well on the US Hot 100 , and very well on the UK pop chart . In the UK, "Hot Legs" and "I Was Only...
" (Stewart). Cher and Dolly having a conversation by reciting lyrics from pop songs, and Cher working by day in a boring secretarial job but getting funky on the dance floor at night in the discos. Even Laverne, Cher's most famous character from the early days of "The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour
The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour
The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour is an American variety show based on the married couple of American pop-singer Cher and her husband, Sonny Bono. The show ran on CBS in the United States, when it premiered in August 1971...
", stops by for a quick chat to give Cher some words of wisdom that only Laverne could deliver. The final segment was a big production number with a medley of songs performed by Cher, Dolly Parton, and The Tubes that has to be seen to be believed. Described as a "Musical Battle to Save Cher's Soul Medley". The Tubes try to lead her astray to the dark world of evil and sin while Dolly Parton and several gospel singers try to save her and show her the light.
Cher...Special concludes with Cher saying, "Momma, I'm still here. I've got the same hair, the same bumpy nose and vampire teeth. But you were right, I feel better about myself now". But some things never change...this time it's Cher's nine-year-old daughter Chastity who asks, "Mom, have you been into my records again?" Cher proves that she truly has come full circle when she says, "my children Chastity and Elijah both have blonde hair. I guess they don't have the advantages of having black hair, but nobody told them it was going to be easy." Then, she performs the song that started it all: When You Wish Upon A Star. As the final credits roll by, Cher's young son Elijah Blue Allman
Elijah Blue Allman
Elijah Blue Allman, also known by his stage name Phillips Exeter Blue I, is the son of Cher and her second husband Gregg Allman and half brother of Chaz Bono, Delilah Allman, Michael Allman, Layla Allman and Devon Allman....
comes out and sits on her lap.
Show running order
- "West Side Story MedleyWest Side StoryWest Side Story is an American musical with a script by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and choreographed by Jerome Robbins...
" performed by Cher. - "Hot LegsHot Legs"Hot Legs" is a single by Rod Stewart. It was written by Gary Grainger and Rod Stewart. Stewart included the song on his 1977 album Foot Loose & Fancy Free. The 1978 single performed moderately well on the US Hot 100 , and very well on the UK pop chart . In the UK, "Hot Legs" and "I Was Only...
" performed by Rod Stewart. - "Two Doors DownTwo Doors Down"Two Doors Down" was a song written and performed by Dolly Parton, which provided a 1978 U.S. country and pop hit for her. The song was sung from the perspective of a woman who has just broken up with her boyfriend and is debating attending a party two doors down the hall from her apartment...
" performed by Dolly Parton. - "Conversation in Song Lyrics", Cher, Parton.
- "Musical Battle to Save Cher's Soul Medley" performed by Cher, Parton & The Tubes. As the title would imply, the performance was a duel between the forces of good and evil to determine where Cher would spend her eternal destiny. Dolly PartonDolly PartonDolly Rebecca Parton is an American singer-songwriter, author, multi-instrumentalist, actress and philanthropist, best known for her work in country music. Dolly Parton has appeared in movies like 9 to 5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Steel Magnolias and Straight Talk...
was dressed in white and, with a team of brightly clad singers, portrayed an angelic host while The TubesThe TubesThe Tubes are a San Francisco-based rock band, whose 1975 debut album included the hit single, "White Punks on Dope". During its first fifteen years or so, the band's live performances combined quasi-pornography with wild satires of media, consumerism, and politics...
, dressed in black leather battled to send Cher's soul into eternal damnation. Songs performed included "Mondo Bondage" (the Tubes), "People Get ReadyPeople Get Ready (song)"People Get Ready" was a 1965 single by The Impressions, and the title track from the album of the same name. The single is today the group's best-known hit, reaching number-three on the Billboard R&B Chart and number 14 on the Billboard Pop Chart...
" (Parton), and "My Sweet LordMy Sweet Lord"My Sweet Lord" is a song by former Beatles lead guitarist George Harrison from his UK number one hit triple album All Things Must Pass. The song was written in praise of the Hindu god Krishna...
" (Cher). - "When You Wish Upon A StarWhen You Wish upon a Star"When You Wish upon a Star" is a song written by Leigh Harline and Ned Washington for Walt Disney's 1940 adaptation of Pinocchio. The original version of the song was sung by Cliff Edwards in the character of Jiminy Cricket, and is heard over the opening credits and again in the final scene of the...
" performed by Cher.
Video released
Currently it is very difficult to find the show, but in on-line stores it's easy to find the complete show with related advertising. The complete "West Side Story Medley" is now available in the DVD edition of The Farewell TourCher: The Farewell Tour Live in Miami
The Farewell Tour is the third live music video title by singer-actress Cher. Released by Warner Music Video in 2003, it contained a live date from Living Proof: The Farewell Tour, filmed at American Airlines Arena in Miami on November 8, 2002. It was originally aired as a television special on...
as a special contents. A number of the special's individual segments (particularly Cher and Parton's "song lyric conversation") have appeared numerous times on YouTube.