Skating Tribute to the great Barbra Streisand

On Tuesday, the great entertainer Barbra Streisand gave a rare interview on Katie Couric's new talkshow "Katie." Streisand talked about her upcoming concert in her hometown of Brooklyn, and about how to prevent heart disease, a cause that she has given millions of dollars out of her own pocket.

The 70-year-old Oscar, Grammy, Emmy, and Tony-award winner was demure, sophisticated and sweet in her interview, diverting attention away from her own accomplishments and focused them back on the issues of women's health. Streisand said that heart disease is the leading cause of women in our country, contributing to 30 percent of deaths.

In 2008, Streisand gifted $5 million to endow the Barbra Streisand Women's Cardiovascular Research and Education Program at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center's Women's Heart Center. Since then, Streisand has raised millions more for the Center.

Click on this link to see clips from Barbra's interview on "Katie." In the second clip on the page, Barbra, Katie, and Dr. Noel Bairey Merz, Director of the Barbra Streisand Women’s Heart Center at the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute, share information about women's heart disease.

Click here to read tips for heart health from Dr. Bairey Merz.

Seeing Streisand on "Katie" reminded me of all the phenomenal musical hits that she has had over the years. Her voice is one-of-a-kind amazing! And her hits have left an indelible mark in the entertainment business, in music history, and in our society!
I am reminded of all the wonderful skating programs that have been done to Streisand's songs over the years. A few that came to mind are as follows:


1.) Sasha Cohen's "Don't Rain on my Parade" (from the musical "Funny Girl.")

(Exhibition from the 2006 Olympics in Torino, Italy. Cohen, the 2006 U.S. National Champion was the silver-medalist in Torino.)






2.) Elena Bechke and Denis Petrov's "You Don't Bring me Flowers" (duet with Neil Diamond that hit No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1978.)

(Bechke and Petrov, 1992 Olympic silver medalists perform here at the 1994 World Professional Championships).





3.) Alissa Czisny's "You'll Never Walk Alone" (From the 1945 Rodger's and Hammerstein Musical "Carousel.)

(Czisny, the 2009 and 2011 U.S. National Champion skates following her gold-medal win at the 2010 Grand Prix Final).





4.) Nancy Kerrigan's "With One Look" (from the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical "Sunset Boulevard.")

(Kerrigan, the 1993 U.S. National Champion, skates here at the 1994 Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway. Kerrigan was the silver medalist at the Games).




5.) Nancy Kerrigan's "The Lord's Prayer" (from Streisand's Christmas album).

(Kerrigan skates this beautiful program at an exhibition in 1993).