Cher (54 page)

In spite of all of the outrageous outfits that had come before, Cher sported her wildest one yet on the cover of 1979’s
Take Me Home
album. (
Casablanca Records/MJB Photo Archives
)

Cher enraged feminist groups when she released her 1979
Prisoner
album with this naked sex slave photo on the cover. (
Casablanca Records/MJB Photo Archives
)

Cher in 1980, walking down Fifth Avenue in New York City with famed guitar player Les Dudek. Together they formed a short-lived rock band, Black Rose. (
AP/Wide World Photos
)

By 1980 Cher already had her sights set on becoming a film star. She had secured the rights to the 1940s film
The Enchanted Cottage
in hopes of starring in it. (
Harry Langdon/Casablanca Records/MJB Photo Archives
)

Cher’s road to becoming a serious actress began with the Broadway play
Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean
. Cher on December 29, 1980, during rehearsals, with her costars Karen Black and Sandy Dennis (left) and their director, Robert Altman (right). (
AP/Wide World Photos
)

After the Broadway run of
Jimmy Dean
, Altman captured Cher and her costars on film. (
Playbill
)

A trio of legendary ladies: films stars Lillian Gish and Lena Horne at the 1982 Tony Awards with Broadway star Cher. (
AP/Wide World Photos
)

After seeing Cher in
Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean
, film director Mike Nichols offered her a lead role in
Silkwood
. Portraying the role of lesbian factory worker Dolly, Cher was forbidden to wear makeup, which horrified her. (
Anchor Bay Entertainment/MJB Photo Archives
)

Meryl Streep as Karen Silkwood, Kurt Russell as her boyfriend, and Cher as her roommate. Together, the three portrayed real-life workers in a Texas nuclear plant. (
Anchor Bay Entertainment/MJB Photo Archives
)

In
Silkwood
, movie audiences were able to see Cher in a whole new light as an actress. She was also nominated for a “Best Supporting Actress” Academy Award for her performance. (
Anchor Bay Entertainment/MJB Photo Archives
)

Cher accepting the Golden Globe Award for her performance in
Silkwood
, January 29, 1984. (
AP/Wide World Photos
)

Cher and Sam Elliott in
Mask
. As the mother of a seriously deformed but magical child named Rocky, Cher’s performance touched movie fans deeply. (
Universal Pictures/MJB Photo Archives
)