Bette Midler to 1969, she played the role of Tzeitel in "Fiddler on the Roof" on Broadway. After "Fiddler", she joined the original cast of "Salvation" in 1969. She began singing in the Continental Baths, a gay bathhouse in the Ansonia Hotel, in the summer of 1970. During this time, she became close to her piano accompanist, Barry Manilow, who produced her first album in 1972, "The Divine Miss M." It was during her time at the Continental Baths that she built up a core following. In the late 1990s, during the release of her album "Bathhouse Betty", Midler commented on her
Bette Midler Out in Beverly Hills", beginning a successful comedic acting career. She followed that role with several more Touchstone comedies, "Ruthless People" (1986), "Outrageous Fortune" (1987), and "Big Business" (1988). Later in 1988, Midler lent her voice to the animated character Georgette, a snobbish poodle, in Disney's "Oliver & Company", and had a hit with the tearjerker "Beaches", co-starring Barbara Hershey. The accompanying soundtrack remains Midler's all-time biggest selling disc, reaching No. 2 on "Billboard"s album chart and with U.S. sales of four million copies. It featured her biggest hit, "Wind Beneath My Wings", which went to No. 1 on "Billboard"s