Barry Manilow on Singing at a Gay Bathhouse Early in His Career and Its Impact on His Sexuality: ‘Great Audience’

Barry Manilow reflects on how he famously began his career playing the piano in a gay bathhouse in New York.

On Friday, The Hollywood Reporter published an extensive feature on the music legend, 80, in which he talks about how he’s still breaking records with his Las Vegas residency and legendary career.

While reflecting on his early days trying to make it in New York as a singer-songwriter in the early ’70s, the superstar even spoke candidly about performing at the Continental Baths, a former gay bath located in the basement of the Ansonia Hotel, now an apartment building called The Ansonia.

When asked by THR of what it was like to play the piano, and later perform with his longtime collaborator Bette Midler, at the venue, Manilow replied, “What do you think they were screwing up in front of us?”

“They were just an audience,” he continued. “And a great audience.”

Barry Manilow for The Hollywood Reporter.

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Although Manilow admitted that it was an “unusual” place – as it was also known as a sex club, and men often watched cabaret acts either completely naked or with just a towel – he also said: “For me, it was a job for $75.”

Despite being immersed in LGBTQ+ culture at the time, Manilow said that he and Midler, 78, actually becoming a household attraction didn’t necessarily lead him to come out with his sexuality.

“I wasn’t sure about it at the time,” the “Mandy” singer said. “There were a lot of us in the world who had yet to figure it out.”

Barry Manilow in October 1975.

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The Grammy winner has kept his personal life out of the public eye for decades, and it wasn’t until 2017 that he officially came out as gay in a PEOPLE cover story.

He explained at the time that he was always hesitant about being open about his sexuality, fearing how it might affect his career and fans. “I thought I would disappoint them if they knew I was gay. So I never did anything – said the “Copacabane” singer.

But that wasn’t necessarily the case when news broke that he married his longtime manager Garry Kief in what was supposed to be a private, low-key ceremony in 2014. Of his fans learning of his marriage, Manilow said, “When they found out if Garry and I were together, they were so happy. The reaction was so beautiful — strangers commented: ‘Great for you!’ I am so grateful for that.”

Before getting married, Manilow and Kief were linked shortly after meeting in 1978.

Barry Manilow.

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The pop icon also told PEOPLE in his 2017 cover story that he knew “this was it” as soon as he and Kief met.

“I was one of the lucky ones,” he said. “Before that I was pretty lonely.”

The “Could It Be Magic” artist added: “Garry didn’t know what I did, even though I had all those records. He was a dude and I was a dude, so we were able to deal with each other as two normal people, not a superstar and a person.”

Barry Manilow in New York in June 2023.

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Manilow kicked off his acclaimed career-spanning The Hits Come Home Las Vegas residency at the Westgate Hotel in Las Vegas back in 2021 — and will continue with a string of concerts throughout 2024.

With the residency, in September 2023, he managed to break Elvis Presley’s long-standing record for the number of concerts ever performed in Sin City, which was set by his residency of 636 dates from 1969 to 1976.

His live performance will resume this year in mid-February and continue until the end of the year.

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Source: HIS Education