ACTOR
Cher
66 archived facts 4 topics 1 source Last reviewed Oct 2026
All facts (66)
- #001
Cher's legal name changed several times throughout her life. She was born Cherilyn Sarkisian, and in 1961, after her stepfather formally adopted her, her legal name was changed to Cheryl LaPiere. After two marriages she had four surnames: Sarkisian LaPiere Bono Allman, though accounts differ on whether she still used her biological father's surname and whether her legal first name was Cherilyn or Cheryl. In 1979 she legally shortened her name to Cher, with no surname.
- #002
She and Barbra Streisand are the only two female artists to have both a number-one hit in the United States and a competitive Oscar win.
- #003
She is good friends with Meryl Streep.
- #004
She wanted to play Morticia Addams in The Addams Family (1991), but the role went to Anjelica Huston.
- #005
She is the only certified female artist in music history to have had a number-one single in the United States in the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s and 1990s.
- #006
She lived mostly in London, England, in the late 1990s and early 2000s. She currently lives in Malibu, California.
- #007
Her Oscar-winning role in Moonstruck (1987) was first offered to Sally Field, who turned it down.
- #008
In early 1999, she and Jennifer Aniston decided to play mother/daughter con artists in Heartbreakers (2001), but scheduling conflicts arose during the film's extended development period. Aniston's commitment to Friends (1994) and Cher's commitment to the Believe Tour meant both had to drop out of the film. They were replaced by Sigourney Weaver and Jennifer Love Hewitt.
- #009
She is one of six actors/actresses to have both a number-one single and an Oscar in acting. The others are Frank Sinatra (1954), Barbra Streisand (1968), Judy Garland (Honorary Oscar) (1940), Jamie Foxx (2005) and Bing Crosby (1945).
- #010
On the morning of her 40th birthday she was called to be offered the role in The Witches of Eastwick (1987).
- #011
With "Believe" she beat Céline Dion's "My Heart Will Go On" for the best-selling single of 1998.
- #012
Shortly after the death of British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, when she appeared on Graham Norton's show in October 2013, Norton pointed out the #nowthatchersdead hashtag, which referred to Thatcher but was misread as Cher's death.
- #013
Her parents married and divorced three times.
- #014
In 1999, at age 52, she broke the record for the oldest female artist to have a number-one single on the US singles chart with "Believe." She was later surpassed by Brenda Lee, who reached number one in 2023 at age 78 with "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" (a song she first recorded in 1958 at age 13); Mariah Carey also surpassed Cher when "All I Want for Christmas Is You" (a song she recorded in 1994 at age 25) reached number one in 2022. Cher still holds the record for the oldest female artist to reach number one with a non-catalog, non-holiday single.
- #015
Cher's father was of Armenian descent. Cher's mother had English and German ancestry, with more distant Dutch, French and Irish origins. Cher's mother was also reported to have Cherokee ancestry, but it is not clear whether this ancestry has been verified and documented.
- #016
Although she was ten years younger than Redford, she was rejected for being too old to play Robert Redford's love interest in Legal Eagles (1986).
- #017
She gave a eulogy at the funeral of her ex-husband Sonny Bono.
- #018
She considers her performance as Rusty Dennis in Mask (1985) to be her best work on screen.
- #019
Between 2002 and 2005 she achieved tremendous success worldwide with her "Living Proof Farewell Tour," making her the world's top diva. It also holds the record for the longest-running and highest-grossing tour by any female artist in history.
- #020
She once lived with rock musician Gene Simmons of KISS.
- #021
Cher and Sonny Bono were among the many celebrities who made regular weekend visits to Ralph Helfer's Africa USA Exotic Animal Farm in Soledad Canyon, California, to help with chores and play with the animals.
- #022
As an adult, Cher wore braces.
- #023
Cher has appeared solo on the cover of People magazine nearly 13 times.
- #024
In a recent poll, A&E Biography Magazine ranked her as the number 3 favorite female actress of all time, behind two Hollywood idols, Katharine Hepburn and Audrey Hepburn.
- #025
Cher was offered the role of Thelma Dickinson in Thelma & Louise (1991), which went to Geena Davis.
- #026
Cher had 4 Barbie dolls made in her likeness: Timeless Treasures Cher, released in 2001, Blonde Ringmaster Cher, 70s Native American Cher and 80s Cher, the last three released in 2007. All four dolls were designed by Bob Mackie.
- #027
Cher has 2 sons: Chaz Bono (b. March 4, 1969) with her 1st ex-husband Sonny Bono, and Elijah Allman (b. July 10, 1976) with her 2nd ex-husband Gregg Allman.
- #028
A 2002 article published in Rolling Stone estimated her fortune at over $600 million. Since then she has embarked on a highly successful farewell tour that is still ongoing and released a greatest-hits CD that spent weeks in the Billboard Top 10.
- #029
Cher had four miscarriages before giving birth to her son Chaz Bono.
- #030
Her half-sister Georganne LaPiere was Michael Madsen's first wife.
- #031
When Cher divorced Sonny Bono in 1974, he was ordered to pay her $25,000 a month for 6 months, $1,500 a month in alimony, and $41,000 for legal fees. Otherwise, their liquid assets were divided 50/50. She got their Bel Air mansion, while Bono received an apartment in Aspen, a house in Palm Springs and another Los Angeles residence.
- #032
Her son Elijah Allman is the vocalist of the band Deadsy.
- #033
Cher was considered for the role of Lilly Dillon in The Grifters (1990), but Anjelica Huston was cast instead and earned a Best Actress Oscar nomination for her performance.
- #034
Cher holds the record for the longest gap between number 1 hits ("Dark Lady" in 1974 and "Believe" in 1999).
- #035
The first live performance of "Believe" took place on November 18, 1998, on Late Show with David Letterman (1993). It was so memorable that CBS re-aired the episode in late 2007.
- #036
Cher admitted that she had a lesbian relationship during her teenage years.
- #037
Sonny Bono and Cher shot a promotional video for the film Good Times (1967) dressed in prehistoric caveman and cavewoman costumes, seated atop Ralph Helfer's Indian elephant Misty.
- #038
Cher began dating producer David Geffen after she and her husband Sonny Bono separated.
- #039
Cher is a big fan of Katharine Hepburn.
- #040
American-born Cher is the most famous Hollywood figure of Armenian ethnicity. The renowned Russia-born filmmaker Sergei Parajanov is the most famous Armenian cinema figure outside Hollywood.
- #041
Cher has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
- #042
Her 1999 hit single "Believe" ranked 60th on VH1's list of the 100 Greatest Dance Songs.
- #043
Cher auditioned for the role of Bonnie Parker in Bonnie and Clyde (1967), which went to Faye Dunaway.
- #044
Cher ties with Mako as the Oscar-nominated actor with the shortest name in history. She technically wins because her name consists of a single syllable and is her real legal name.
- #045
She and Sonny Bono made a film for Columbia Pictures titled Good Times (1967), but it was such a flop that Columbia immediately sold the rights to the sequel, Speedway (1968), which they had planned as a vehicle for Elvis Presley and Nancy Sinatra, to MGM.
- #046
When Cher won the Best Actress Oscar for Moonstruck (1987) at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on April 11, 1988, her son Chaz Bono — then her daughter Chastity — and her partner at the time, Rob Camilletti, were seated beside her.
- #047
In addition to her Oscar and Emmy wins, Cher won a 2000 Grammy for Best Dance Recording with the song "Believe."
- #048
All of Cher's Emmy nominations were for variety series or music programs with her name in the title.
- #049
Cher employed 70 workers for two years to build a rocky Malibu mansion with 7 bedrooms, a wig room, a guest house, a pool and a tennis court, then put it up for sale for "£20 million."
- #050
Her daughter Chastity Bono underwent gender reassignment surgery in 2009 to become a man. In April 2010, Chastity legally changed her name to Chaz Salvatore Bono and is billed as Chaz Bono.
- #051
Aside from her two marriages, Cher's most serious relationship was with 18-year-old bagel baker Rob Camilletti, with whom she lived from 1986 to 1989 and occasionally rekindled their romance until at least 2001. She has also dated (in alphabetical order): Warren Beatty, Eric Clapton, Tom Cruise, Les Dudek, Ron Duguay, Alan Gorrie, John Heard, Mark Hudson, Val Kilmer, Ray Liotta, John Loeffler, Tim Medvetz, David Paich, Richie Sambora, Michael Seitz, Eric Stoltz and Ron Zimmerman. Some reports once linked her to Michael Bolton, but she categorically denied it on Late Show with David Letterman (1993) in 2010. There were also rumors that Cher was romantically involved with a member of her band during her Farewell Tour.
- #052
Cher is the former stepsister-in-law of Michael Madsen and Virginia Madsen.
- #053
Cher dropped out of Flint (2017), citing a family matter.
- #054
Cher is mentioned alongside Sonny Bono in Shawn Mullins' "Lullaby" (1998).
- #055
Cher ranked 26th on VH1's 100 Sexiest Artists.
- #056
Her song "Believe" is believed to strongly resemble Jennifer Lopez's "Waiting for Tonight."
- #057
Cher's favorite makeup artist, Kevyn Aucoin, died of a brain tumor in 2002.
- #058
Before entering the music industry, Cher studied acting with Jeff Corey.
- #059
Cher was engaged to television producer Joshua Donen (1984-85).
- #060
Cher's number-one hit "Believe" holds the distinction of being the first commercially released song to officially feature the vocal pitch-correction software known as Auto-Tune, developed by Harold Andy Hildebrand. After seeing English singer-songwriter Andrew Roachford perform with a Vocoder, Cher insisted that a similar effect be added to her vocals on "Believe."
- #061
Cher competed for the role of Juliet Capulet in the 1968 film Romeo and Juliet.
- #062
Singing ran in Cher's family.
- #063
Cher's first recording session was as a backing vocalist on "Be My Baby."
- #064
Cher's parents, John Paul Sarkisian and Georgia Holt (also known as Jackie Jean Crouch), married on June 22, 1945.
- #065
Cher endorsed Kamala Harris for president in 2024.
- #066
Cher's parents married and divorced three times.
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