On this day in history: Cher wins Best Actress Oscar
On 11 April 1988, Cher won the Best Actress category for the film Moonstruck at the Academy Awards.
The singer, born Cherilyn Sarkasian, on May 20, 1946, first became famous as the female half of the 1960s singing duo Sonny and Cher. The married couple scored their first hit, I Got You Babe in 1965; their television series, The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour ran from 1971 to 1974. The couple split up after having one child, Chastity.
By that time, Cher had launched a solo music career, scoring hit singles like Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves (1971), Half-Breed (1973) and Dark Lady (1974). Her short-lived solo TV effort, Cher, wasn’t a hit with critics but her movie career later soared.
She acted in films such as Silkwood alongside Meryl Streep, The Witches of Eastwick, Suspects, Mermaids and her recent film Burlesque opposite fellow singer Christina Aguilera.
