Entertainment Movies Musical Movies The Most Glamorous Throwback Photos of Barbra Streisand The 'Funny Girl' star made her name on Broadway stages and feature film screens in the early 1960s By Zoey Lyttle Zoey Lyttle Zoey Lyttle is an Editorial Assistant at PEOPLE. She writes digital specials across all entertainment verticals and has been working at PEOPLE since July 2022. People Editorial Guidelines Published on February 24, 2024 09:00AM EST Barbra Streisand. Photo: Fairchild Archive/Penske Media via Getty Barbra Streisand's star has been shining for over six decades. The EGOT winner shot to fame in the early '60s, first breaking into Broadway then making her way onto screens big and small. She's dominated the entertainment industry for her career's entirety and remains revered as a multi-talented performer. At the 2024 Screen Actors Guild Awards on Feb. 24, Streisand celebrates her many years in the spotlight as the recipient of the Life Achievement Award. Look back on Streisand's younger years with throwback photos from her earliest appearances to her career-defining roles in Funny Girl and A Star Is Born. 01 of 12 Broadway Beginnings Barbra Streisand. Underwood Archives/Getty In 1962, Streisand broke into show business in the Broadway musical I Can Get It for You Wholesale, which earned the 20-year-old up-and-comer her first Tony nomination. The play launched her career and her love life: the show's leading man, Elliott Gould, became Streisand's first husband. 02 of 12 Commanding the Stage Barbra Streisand. CBS Photo Archive/Getty During her breakout year in 1962, the Brooklyn-born talent made several TV appearances singing on variety shows like The Ed Sullivan Show (pictured) and The Garry Moore Show. 03 of 12 New Friends Barbra Streisand. National Archive/Newsmakers As her star rose, Streisand became acquainted with some of the biggest names in the entertainment industry and beyond. In 2018, she reflected on meeting the president with a throwback Instagram post. "I never ask for autographs but I made an exception when I met President John F. Kennedy in 1963," she captioned the moment. 04 of 12 Another Star Is Born Barbra Streisand. Stanley Bielecki Movie In 1966, the multi-hyphenate talent nabbed her greatest role yet: mom. Streisand and Elliott Gould welcomed their only son, Jason. During his younger years, he appeared alongside his mother in a few of her projects, including Up the Sandbox and The Prince of Tides. As an adult, Jason has pursued a music career of his own and even joined Streisand on tour in 2012 to perform a duet of "How Deep is the Ocean." 05 of 12 Dismissing Any Doubt Barbra Streisand. CBS Photo Archive/Getty In her career-spanning memoir, My Name Is Barbra, which hit shelves in 2023, Streisand discussed the widespread judgement she endured over her physical appearance. People repeatedly told her that she'd find more success in the spotlight if she got a nose job and capped her teeth. “I thought, Isn’t my talent enough? A nose job would hurt and be expensive,” the performer wrote in her book. “Besides, how could I trust anyone to do exactly what I wanted and no more?” 06 of 12 Self Love Barbra Streisand. Michael Ochs Archives/Getty In her memoir, she shared that she's always appreciated her "long" nose and feared any surgery could affect her vocal talent. Ultimately, Streisand shook off her critics and made confident strides in showbiz without altering her facial features. “It was too much of a risk," she reflects in her book. "And who knew what it might do to my voice? Once a doctor told me I had a deviated septum…maybe that’s why I sound the way I do." 07 of 12 Broadway's Best Barbra Streisand. Silver Screen Collection/Getty Streisand originated the iconic role of Fanny Brice in Funny Girl's first run on Broadway in 1964. She earned yet an another Tony nomination for the part, which has since been revived by Lea Michele and Beanie Feldstein, among other musically gifted stars. 08 of 12 On the Big Screen Barbra Streisand. Silver Screen Collection/Getty In 1968, Funny Girl became a movie musical, and Streisand took home her first Oscar for her big-screen performance as Fanny. 09 of 12 Highest Honors Barbra Streisand. Bettmann/Getty Streisand has since earned four more Oscar nods, and she took home the win for Best Song with "Evergreen" in 1977. With several other major awards under her belt, the "Woman in Love" singer is one of the few stars to earn an EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony). 10 of 12 Born for Stardom Barbra Streisand. Tony Korody/Sygma/Sygma/Getty The megastar made a massive impact on the movie industry, starring in several acclaimed feature films like Hello, Dolly!, The Way We Were and Yentl, which she also directed, produced and wrote. She stepped into one of her most iconic roles in 1976, when she played the lead in a third remake of A Star Is Born. 11 of 12 Looking Back Barbara Streisand. Universal Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Though she boasts dozens of awards and a career full of highlights — enough to fill a 970-page memoir — Streisand has acknowledged what she missed out on. Speaking to the BBC in November 2023, the A-lister detailed how her desires have evolved since stepping back from screens and stages. “I want to live life. I want to get in my husband's truck and just wander, hopefully with the children somewhere near us," said Streisand, who has been married to James Brolin since 1998. She continued, "I haven't had much fun in my life, to tell you the truth. And I want to have more fun." 12 of 12 Closing Old Chapters Barbra Streisand. Fairchild Archive/Penske Media via Gett Streisand last starred in the 2012 comedy The Guilt Trip, and she told PEOPLE there's no rush to get back on any set. In fact, the 10-time Grammy winner doesn't know if she has the energy to make another movie at all. "It gets exhausting, trying to come up with the structure of the movie and then have it not happen," she said in December 2023. Close