Barbra Streisand appeared as a guest on The Ed Sullivan Show five times in the 1960s.
Ed Sullivan’s one hour-long show aired live on CBS television every Sunday evening until 1971. The show was performed from a Broadway theater that CBS converted into a television studio and named CBS-TV Studio 50. (Late Show with David Letterman broadcast from The Ed Sulivan Theater for years; The Late Show with Stephen Colbert tapes there now, 2020.)
The Ed Sullivan Show was the quintessential variety show.
As the host, Sullivan presented an entertaining array of performers each week: rock stars like The Beatles or The Rolling Stones; excerpts from Broadway's greatest shows like Camelot or Oliver; variety acts that spun bottles or balanced rings; and cultural artists like the Bolshoi Ballet or opera singer Joan Sutherland.
From the Ed Sullivan official website: “There were countless acts and performers who made their debuts—or their most famous TV outings—on his show. Ed Sullivan had his finger right on the pulse of what was hot and intriguing in the way of talent, even if he himself didn’t have a discernable pulse onstage. Ed knew how to book ‘em better than anyone.”
Streisand wrote about this show: “I liked Ed — but one thing that makes me crazy is how many people mispronounce my name — he was no exception. All during dress rehearsals, I kept hearing him say ‘And now let's hear it for Columbia Records recording star Barbra Streis-LAND!’ It made me so nervous that during the actual broadcast, when it was my turn, I stood behind the curtain whispering, ‘Strei-SAND! Strei-SAND! Like sand on the beach!”
