In each episode of our podcast “Life in Seven Songs,” we ask the world’s brightest minds and leaders: What songs tell the story of your life? This week’s guest is Sandra Bernhard, the actress, singer, comedian, and queer-culture icon who sprouted from humble beginnings and whose decades-long career has influenced a generation of entertainers.
Bernhard has come a long way from her conservative Jewish upbringing in Flint, Michigan, in the twilight of the 1950s.
Her nanny would play “Que Sera, Sera” by Doris Day. One of the few records Bernhard had access to as a kid, it illustrated the fate of many midcentury women. “It was sort of reflective of the times we were growing up in, where women followed certain rules,” she said.
Bernhard took life by the horns. She knew she was destined to be an entertainer at age 5, and as a teen, the music of Joni Mitchell became her spiritual lodestar. “When I listened to Joni Mitchell, it was like I knew what was waiting on the other end of the journey to finish high school and collect my thoughts and my life, and as it turns out, move to L.A.,” she said.
In the mid-’70s, Bernhard worked as a manicurist in Beverly Hills before making a name for herself with her cabaret act, which mixed comedy, song, and social commentary. “That was my jumping off place — to start performing,” she said. With nothing but a knack for giving a great mani-pedi and an innate desire to perform, “from that point on, I always made a living as a performing actress, writer, and entertainer,” she said.
Her breakout role came in Martin Scorcese’s 1982 film “The King of Comedy,” in which she played a deranged fan. It was a watershed moment for Bernhard, and by the mid-’80s, she was a cultural force, unafraid to skewer the absurdities of fame and power, and drawing on music to amplify her message.
In “Life in Seven Songs,” Bernhard takes us on a journey through her childhood and life in show business, using music as her guide.
Listen to Bernhard’s playlist on Spotify, and find a transcript of the podcast episode here. Thoughts? Guest suggestions? Email us at lifeinsevensongs@sfstandard.com.