Gay icon Own Kind of Music" and "Different") and free love. Her music was later featured in the acclaimed gay film "Beautiful Thing" (1996), adapted from the play of the same name. Singer and actress Bette Midler became recognized as a gay icon in the 1970s. After performing on Broadway, Midler began performing at the Continental Baths, a gay bathhouse in the city, where she became close to her piano accompanist Barry Manilow, who produced her first major album "The Divine Miss M" (1973). "Despite the way things turned out [with the AIDS crisis], I'm still proud of those days [singing at
The Best of Bette (1981 album) single mix with an additional verse making its second appearance on a compilation album. The pictures used for the cover of the K-Tel version of "The Best of Bette" show Midler in concert, taken from the movie "The Rose". The compilation is sometimes listed as having been released in 1980, other times in 1981. Considering the fact that the "Divine Madness" album was released worldwide in November 1980 it was more likely issued in 1981. The first Bette Midler "greatest hits" compilation to be released worldwide, including the US and Canada, was 1993's "Experience the Divine". Side A Side B