WEST HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA: Concerns over Liza Minnelli’s health were heightened recently after she missed the premiere of the new musical ‘New York, New York,’ which is an adaption of the 1977 movie of the same name. The opening happened late in April but the Hollywood icon was missing.
A source told RadarOnline.com, “There's no way Liza would miss this unless something was seriously wrong. Her health isn't good. She's using a wheelchair and doesn't get out much — and after moving to California, the trip back to New York would have been too much.” However, a spokesperson for Minnelli appeared to deny any health problem as they claimed the ‘Cabaret’ star did not want to overshadow others and make it “all about Liza.”
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‘I couldn’t walk and I couldn’t talk’
The 77-year-old actress has been out of the public eye lately after getting diagnosed with viral encephalitis. In 2004, NBC News quoted her saying, “I couldn’t walk and I couldn’t talk, and they told me I wouldn’t… ever again. After I was told that, everybody left the room and I turned my face to the wall and started to go 'A - B - C.' You know, that’s what it felt like because I had Carnegie Hall to rehearse. I want to live. I have always wanted to live.”
Last year, at the Academy Awards, Minnelli made a rare appearance but in a wheelchair. However, according to singer Michael Feinstein, a friend of the ‘Rent-a-Cop' actress, it was all staged to cool down the drama that ensued after Will Smith slapped Chris Rock.
‘She was so shaken that she was discombobulated’
Feinstein reportedly said, “She was sabotaged. That’s a terrible word to use, but she only agreed to appear at the Oscars if she would be in the director’s chair because she’s been having back trouble. She said, ‘I don’t want people to see me limping out there.’ She said, ‘You know, I want to look good. I don’t want people to worry about me.’”
“She was so shaken that she was discombobulated. She was nervous, and it made her look like she was out of it. Can you imagine being suddenly forced to be seen by millions of people the way you don’t want to be seen? That’s what happened to her,” he added.
‘She’s been under tremendous pressure her entire life’
Meanwhile, on the topic of her being away from Tinseltown, her former publicist Scott Gorenstein reportedly shared once, “Liza is living her best life, not having to be in front of the cameras. She’s been under tremendous pressure her entire life to perform for audiences. The past couple of years has allowed her to relax and enjoy another phase of her life.”
“She has had some health problems. However, when an opportunity comes in front of me that says ‘Would Liza Minnelli like to present the Best Picture Oscar with Lady Gaga?’ the quiet life goes out of the window! Liza is a legend and she deserves to be at the Academy Awards, so I put it in front of her people and recommended that she do it. I wanted to remind people who she is,” Gorenstein noted.