Peter Allen | |
|---|---|
 Allen in 1967 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | Peter Richard Woolnough (1944-02-10)10 February 1944 Tenterfield, New South Wales, Australia |
| Died | 18 June 1992(1992-06-18) (aged 48) San Diego, California, U.S. |
| Genres | Pop |
| Occupations |
|
| Instruments |
|
| Years active | 1959–1992 |
| Labels | |
| Formerly of | The Allen Brothers |
Spouse | |
Peter Allen (bornPeter Richard Woolnough; 10 February 1944 – 18 June 1992) was an Australian singer-songwriter, musician, and entertainer, known for his flamboyant stage persona, energetic performances, and lavish costumes. Allen's songs were made popular by many recording artists, includingElkie Brooks,Melissa Manchester andOlivia Newton-John, including Newton-John's first chart-topping hit "I Honestly Love You", and the chart-topping andAcademy Award-winning "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)" byChristopher Cross.
In addition to recording many albums, Allen enjoyed a cabaret and concert career, including appearances at theRadio City Music Hall riding a camel. Hispatriotic song "I Still Call Australia Home" has been used extensively in advertising campaigns, and was added to theNational Film and Sound Archive'sSounds of Australia registry in 2013.[1]
Allen was the first husband ofLiza Minnelli. They met in October 1964, were engaged on 26 November 1964, married on 3 March 1967, formally separated on 8 April 1970, and divorced on 24 July 1974.[2][3][4] Allen had a long-term partner, model Gregory Connell. They met in 1973 and were together until Connell's death in 1984.[5][6] Allen and Connell died from AIDS related cancer eight years apart, with Allen becoming one of the first well-known Australians to die from AIDS. Allen remained ambiguous about his sexuality in that he did not pretend to be heterosexual after divorcing Minnelli, but never publicly came out as gay either.[7]
In a 1991 interview with the gay newspaperNew York Native, Allen said, "I was 'out' on stage years before anyone else. But I think outing is limiting. I don't feel like I should be labeled."[8] Despite Allen's outgoing persona, he was an intensely private man who shared little about his personal life even with those close to him. Allen did not say he had HIV/AIDS, partly in fear of alienating conservative, heterosexual fans and partly from thinking audiences would not want to see a performer they knew was sick.[7] In 1998, a musical about his life,The Boy from Oz, debuted in Australia. It ran onBroadway and earnedHugh Jackman aTony Award forBest Actor in a Musical.
Allen was born Peter Richard Woolnough on 10 February 1944, to Richard John Woolnough, soldier and grocer, and his wife, Marion Bryden (née Davidson), at Prince Albert Memorial Hospital inTenterfield,New South Wales, a small Australian country town where his grandfather,George Woolnough, worked as asaddler. He had one sibling, a younger sister named Lynne. Allen grew up in nearbyArmidale and lived there from about six weeks of age until he was 14. This is also where he first learned piano and dance. Allen's performing career began when he was 11, playing the piano in the ladies' lounge of the New England Hotel in Armidale.[9] His father became a violent alcoholic after returning from World War II.[10] In November 1958, he committed suicide by gunshot when Allen was 14. Soon after his father's suicide, Allen left school with an Intermediate Certificate and moved toLismore with his mother and sister to live with relatives.[11] His grandfather, George Woolnough, never understood or got over this devastating event. This tale is told in Allen's 1972 song, "Tenterfield Saddler".[9]
In 1959, Allen went toSurfers Paradise to look for work and met Chris Bell, an English-born singer-guitarist. Assisted by Chris Bell's father, Peter, and inspired byThe Everly Brothers, they formed a singing duo calledThe Allen Brothers. Allen began performing as "Peter Allen" around the same time. Within a year, they were based in Sydney performing on the Australian music television programBandstand.[9] In 1964,Mark Herron, the husband ofJudy Garland, discovered The Allen Brothers while they were performing in Hong Kong. They became Judy Garland's opening act when she toured. Charmed by Allen, Judy served as a matchmaker between him and her daughter,Liza Minnelli. The Allen Brothers Act broke up in the spring of 1970.[2]
Allen started releasing solo recordings in 1971, but throughout his career achieved greater success through his songs being recorded by others. Allen scored his biggest success with the song "I Honestly Love You", which he co-wrote withJeff Barry and which became a major hit in 1974 forOlivia Newton-John. Her single reached number one in the United States and Canada and won twoGrammy Awards, forRecord of the Year andBest Female Pop Vocal Performance for Newton-John. Allen also co-wrote "Don't Cry Out Loud" withCarole Bayer Sager, popularized byMelissa Manchester in 1978, and "I'd Rather Leave While I'm in Love", also co-written with Bayer Sager and popularized byRita Coolidge in 1979. One of hissignature songs, "I Go to Rio", co-written withAdrienne Anderson, was popularized in America by the groupPablo Cruise.
In 1976, Allen released an album,Taught by Experts, which reached number one in Australia, along with the number one single "I Go to Rio" and the Top 10 hit of aHarry Warren standard "The More I See You". The album also included the song "Quiet Please, There's A Lady On Stage" which was recorded by many artists includingJack Jones andDusty Springfield. Although his recording career in the US never progressed, he performed inAtlantic City and atCarnegie Hall. He had three extended sold-out engagements at New York City'sRadio City Music Hall, where he became the first male dancer to dance withThe Rockettes and rode a camel during "I Go to Rio".[2] This performance was broadcast live and exclusively on subscription television serviceWHT The Movie Network.[12]
Allen's most successful album wasBi-Coastal (1980), produced byDavid Foster and featuring the single "Fly Away", which in 1981 became his only US chart single, reaching No. 55 on theBillboard Hot 100. In addition, Allen co-wrote thePatti LaBelle hit "I Don't Go Shopping", which reached the top 30 on the R&B chart in 1980.
Allen co-wrote the song "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)" withBurt Bacharach,Carole Bayer Sager andChristopher Cross, for the 1981 filmArthur. The song reached number onein the US and the songwriters won anAcademy Award for Best Song. One lyric for the song, "If you get caught between the moon and New York City", was adapted from an earlier song that he and Bayer Sager co-wrote. Allen and Bayer Sager also co-wrote "You and Me (We Wanted It All)", which was recorded byFrank Sinatra for his 1980 albumTrilogy. A video of Sinatra singing the song at Carnegie Hall was included as part of theSinatra: New York live performancebox set, released in late 2009.
Allen performed on Australian television for many important occasions: in front ofQueen Elizabeth II in 1980 at theSydney Opera House, beforePrince Charles andPrincess Diana, once inMelbourne and again in Sydney in 1981, at the opening of theSydney Entertainment Centre in 1983, where he unveiled for the first time his Australian "Flag" shirt, and the1980 VFL Grand Final in Melbourne. His "Up in One Concert" of 1980 was a big ratings success across the country. When Australia won theAmerica's Cup in1983, he flew toPerth to sing before an audience of 100,000. In 1988, he opened for Frank Sinatra atSanctuary Cove, Queensland. In America, he appeared at the 30th anniversary ofDisneyland. He returned to recording on Arista with an album entitledNot the Boy Next Door (1983). In 1990, he recorded his final album on RCA Victor,Making Every Moment Count, which featured Melissa Manchester andHarry Connick Jr. The song "Making Every Moment Count", a duet with Manchester, was co-written bySeth Swirsky, who also produced a number of songs he co-wrote with Allen, including Allen's last-released single, "Tonight You Made My Day".
One of his songs, '"I Still Call Australia Home", became popular through its use in television commercials, initially forNational Panasonic and, since 1987, forQantas.[13][14]
Allen's most covered song is "I Honestly Love You".[citation needed]
On 23 September 2025, Barry Manilow released the Allen-penned (along with Dean Pitchford) song "Once Before I Go," a single from his forthcoming album "What a Time." The song originally appeared on Allen's 1983 Album "Not the Boy Next Door."
Allen made hisBroadway debut on 12 January 1971, inSoon, a rock opera that opened at theRitz Theatre and ran for three performances. He starred in his own one-man revue on Broadway at theBiltmore Theatre,Up in One: More Than a Concert (1979), which ran for 46 performances.[15]
Allen recorded a live album calledCaptured Live at Carnegie Hall, in which songs from his musicalLegs Diamond, were previewed.Legs Diamond opened on Broadway at theMark Hellinger Theatre on 26 December 1988, with a book co-written byHarvey Fierstein. The musical ran for 64 performances and 72 previews. AfterLegs Diamond closed he returned to concert work, touring withBernadette Peters during the summer of 1989.[16] Allen and Bernadette also performed in the 1983 Academy Award broadcast in an extended musical tribute toIrving Berlin.
Though flamboyant on stage, Allen was quite the opposite offstage. He once remarked, "I'm not the let's-tear-his-clothes-off type. I'm fairly quiet. The maniac only comes out when I hit the stage. I have to be a different person offstage. If I were to try to keep that up 24 hours a day, I would have a nervous breakdown."[18] Allen described his stage persona as "a much more interesting person than me. I think that's why I'm in show business, to get to be that other person."[19] Allen further depicted his stage persona as "someone much taller, much handsomer, with a better hairline."[20] Although Allen described himself as "so boring" when not performing, he enjoyed swimming; wind surfing; skiing; water skiing; sailing; collecting Hawaiian shirts; reading; cooking; and growing flowers, herbs, and vegetables.[18][21][22] Allen spent so much time working in his yard that he imagined his neighbors thought he was a landscape gardener.[18]
Allen owned a beach house inLeucadia, California (north of San Diego), a place he called a 'shack' inOak Beach, Queensland, Australia, and a penthouse apartment in Manhattan.[23] While visiting Gregory Connell's parents in Leucadia in 1975, Allen learned there was a nearby house for sale and so purchased his first house with the earnings made from his 1974 song, "I Honestly Love You".[24] The area was quiet and far enough away from Los Angeles that he did not get people dropping in because they were in the neighborhood.[22] He wrote the 1976 song "Puttin' Out Roots" about his move to Leucadia.[25] The living room of Allen's Leucadia beach house is featured on the cover of his 1979 album,I Could Have Been a Sailor.[26]
Allen metLiza Minnelli (born 1946) at London Airport on 28 October 1964, where she and her motherJudy Garland were rehearsing for their upcoming performance at theLondon Palladium in early November.[27] They were engaged a month later on 26 November 1964, atTrader Vic's, a restaurant at the London Hilton. They married in New York City on 3 March 1967, formally separated on 8 April 1970, and divorced on 24 July 1974.[2][3][4]
Allen became more comfortable with his homosexuality in the early 1970s.[28] He explained, "I was afraid as a teen, that if I acknowledged that I preferred my own kind, my family would stop loving me. We do tend to underrate our families."[29] Allen and Gregory Connell (1949–1984) met when Greg and a mutual friend attended Peter's show at New York's Continental Baths in 1973.[30] Greg thought Peter was working too hard for the money he was getting and so helped him get his first band together, while Peter found him "gorgeous", "sweet", and good-hearted.[5][31] According to Allen's biographerStephen MacLean, Connell was "Peter's big love."[32] Connell, a fashion and print model originally from Texas, attracted major clients, such as Coca-Cola and did lucrative print ads and commercials.[33] Moreover, he acted in community and dinner theatres and sang in a group called "Voice Six".[34] After they got together, Connell left his modeling career to support Allen's music career by becoming his lighting and staging director and tour manager. This arrangement enabled them to be together while Allen performed around the world. Connell also sang backup on Allen's 1976 song, "I Go to Rio".[35][36] He did so much work behind the scenes that Peter once remarked, "Gregory does everything but get up here and sing!"[37] After becoming ill in late 1982, Connell died from AIDS-related pneumonia on 11 September 1984, at their home in Leucadia.[38][39]
Although Allen wrote "Once Before I Go" in 1982 for good friendAnn-Margret to use as a closing song at her concerts, the song took on new meaning when he sang it. According to the song's co-writer Dean Pitchford, by the time Peter was going into the studio to work on the "Not The Boy Next Door" album (1983), Greg's [AIDS] diagnosis was clear. Therefore, Peter wanted to honor him with this ballad. However, since the song was written specifically for Ann-Margret, Peter had Dean make a small tweak to the lyrics that would personalize it to his and Greg's story. So, the last verse changed from "The air I breathe/My morning sun/You'll be with me in years to come" to "You are the light that shines on me/You always were and you'll always be" to reference Connell's role as Allen's lighting director.[40] Allen told Pitchford that "it was the one song he related most to Greg; that he thought of Greg as he sang it, Greg behind the lights at all of his shows."[41][42] Allen further told Pitchford that "after Gregory died, he would always look into the spotlight and imagine that Gregory was behind the light."[42]
Allen dedicated his 1985 album,Captured Live at Carnegie Hall, to Connell and sang songs in his memory at AIDS benefit concerts.[43][44][45] After Connell's death, Allen poured himself even more into his work. Allen spent several years getting his musicalLegs Diamond on Broadway (it premiered in 1988), recorded his final albumMaking Every Moment Count in 1990, and continued performing in concerts and doing various benefits until his death in 1992 at the age of 48.[46][2]
On 26 November 2005, an extension of the Tenterfield Library was opened and named the "George Woolnough Wing", named after Allen's paternal grandfather who was memorialized in his song, "Tenterfield Saddler".[38]
Allen's last performance was on 26 January 1992, in Sydney, and he was diagnosed with an AIDS-related throat cancer shortly after. Allen spent his final days at his beach house in Leucadia.[47][38] He died atMercy Hospital,San Diego, on 18 June 1992.[48] A private memorial service was held on 21 June 1992, at his home in Leucadia, where his ashes were scattered in the Pacific Ocean within sight of his house.[49]
A documentary titledThe Boy from Oz about Allen was produced after his death, featuring clips from his performances as well as interviews with performers who worked with him.[50]
A stage musical based on his life, also titledThe Boy from Oz, opened in Australia in 1998. Using his largely autobiographical songs, the production starredTodd McKenney as Allen andChristina Amphlett of the rock groupDivinyls asJudy Garland. In 2003, the musical opened on Broadway, becoming the first Australian musical ever to be performed there. In this production Allen was played byHugh Jackman, who won aTony Award for his portrayal in 2004. Jackman performed this role again two years later when the show toured large arenas in Australia under the titleThe Boy from Oz: Arena Spectacular. A TV mini series,Peter Allen: Not the Boy Next Door, was broadcast in Australia in 2015 withJoel Jackson playing the adult Allen andKy Baldwin playing him as a youth. Supporting roles were played byRebecca Gibney as Marion Woolnough (Allen's mother), Sarah West as Liza Minnelli andSigrid Thornton as Judy Garland.[51]
Allen was inducted into theARIA Hall of Fame in 1993.[52]
In the 1979 filmAll That Jazz, Allen's live rendition of "Everything Old Is New Again" is danced to byAnn Reinking and Erzebet Foldi forRoy Scheider's character Joe Gideon based on dancerBob Fosse.
Hugh Jackman's performance of Allen's "Once Before I Go" (fromThe Boy from Oz) was featured in a montage dedicated toAlex Trebek in his final episode ofJeopardy! which aired on 8 January 2021, exactly two months after Trebek's death from stage IVpancreatic cancer on 8 November 2020, at the age of 80.[53][54]
La Casa Azul's songTerry, Peter y yo makes reference to Allen, Judy Garland, and Liza Minnelli:
Peter Allen sang
As Judy came back to life at Christmas
Decadent and stellar
Peter Allen danced
As Liza flashed
At theSunday Night
Peter Allen sang nonstop
No one listened to him
Peter Allen danced alone
And got all sentimental
But there was no one else...
In September 2025,Barry Manilow released a single of the Peter Allen/Dean Pitchford song "Once Before I Go", which will be on his forthcoming albumWhat A Time.[55]
| Year | Album details | Peak chart positions | Certification | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS [56] | US [citation needed] | |||
| 1971 | Peter Allen
| — | — | |
| 1972 | Tenterfield Saddler
| 95[A] | — | |
| 1974 | Continental American
| 87[B] | — | |
| 1976 | Taught by Experts
| 11 | — | |
| 1979 | I Could Have Been a Sailor
| 69 | 171 | |
| 1980 | Bi-Coastal
| 55 | 123 | |
| 1983 | Not the Boy Next Door
| 36 | 170 | |
| 1990 | Making Every Moment Count
| — | — | |
| Year | Album details | Peak chart positions |
|---|---|---|
| AUS [56] | ||
| 1977 | It Is Time for Peter Allen
| 30 |
| 1985 | Captured Live at Carnegie Hall
| — |
| Year | Album details | Peak chart positions | Certification |
|---|---|---|---|
| AUS [56][58] | |||
| 1982 | The Very Best of Peter Allen /The Best
| 9 |
|
| 1992 | The Very Best of Peter Allen: The Boy from Down Under
| 16 | |
| 1993 | At His Best
| — | |
| 1995 | The Boy from Oz
| 35 | |
| 1998 | Singer-Songwriter: The Anthology
| — | |
| 2001 | 20th Century Masters: The Best of Peter Allen
| — | |
| 2006 | The Ultimate Peter Allen
| 18[C] |
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Album | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS [60] | US [61] | US AC [61] | NZ [62] | NLD [63] | BEL [64] | |||
| 1971 | "Honest Queen" | — | — | — | — | — | — | Peter Allen |
| 1972 | "Just Ask Me I've Been There" | — | — | — | — | — | — | Tenterfield Saddler |
| "Tenterfield Saddler" | 53[D] | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1975 | "I Honestly Love You" | — | — | — | — | — | — | Continental American |
| "She Loves to Hear the Music" | — | — | — | — | — | — | Taught by Experts | |
| 1976 | "The More I See You" | 80 | 108 | 40 | — | — | — | |
| "I Go to Rio" | 1 | — | — | 22 | 27 | 30 | ||
| 1977 | "The More I See You"(re-release) | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 1978 | "Don't Cry Out Loud" | — | — | — | — | — | — | I Could Have Been a Sailor |
| 1979 | "Don't Wish Too Hard" | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| "I Could Have Been a Sailor" | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1980 | "I Still Call Australia Home" | 60[E] | — | — | — | — | — | Bi-Coastal |
| "Bi-Coastal" | 78 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1981 | "Fly Away" | — | 55 | 45 | — | — | — | |
| "One Step Over the Borderline" | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1983 | "Not the Boy Next Door" | 76 | — | — | — | — | — | Not the Boy Next Door |
| "You Haven't Heard the Last of Me" | — | — | 15 | — | — | — | ||
| "Once Before I Go" | — | — | 26 | — | — | — | ||
| 1984 | "You and Me (We Wanted It All)" | — | — | 41 | — | — | — | |
Peter Allen won anAcademy Award (Oscar) for Best Original Song for "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)" in 1981.[65]
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result (wins only) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 54th Academy Awards | Peter Allen, Burt Bacharach, Christopher Cross, & Carole Bayer Sager | Best Original Song - Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do) | Won |
On 29 September 1981, Peter Allen was commissioned asCanberra's first ambassador-at-large by the Minister of State for the Capital Territory, Michael Hodgman. At the ceremony, Peter was presented with the Keys of Canberra and a scroll setting out his commission.[66][67]
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | Peter Allen | Ambassador-at-Large for Canberra - in appreciation of work performed and personal effort expended in advancing the status of Canberra as Australia's National Capital. | Won |
TheASCAP Awards honors its top members in a series of annual awards shows in seven different music categories: pop, rhythm and soul, film and television, Latin, country, Christian, and concert music.
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| ASCAP Film and Television Music Awards 1991 | Peter Allen, Burt Bacharach, Christopher Cross, & Carole Bayer Sager | Most Performed Feature Film Standards - Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do) | Won |
The Australian Entertainment Mo Awards (commonly known informally as theMo Awards), were annual Australian entertainment industry awards. They recognised achievements in live entertainment in Australia from 1975 to 2016. Peter Allen won two awards in that time. They later named an award after him called the "Peter Allen Performer of the Year" Award.[68]
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Peter Allen | International Act of the Year | Won |
| 1984 | Peter Allen | International Act of the Year | Won |
TheAPRA Awards were established in 1982 to honour songwriters, composers and publishers that achieved artistic excellence and outstanding success in their fields.[69]
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| APRA Music Awards of 1982 | Peter Allen, Burt Bacharach, Christopher Cross, & Carole Bayer Sager | Most Performed Foreign Work - Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do) | Won |
TheARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres ofAustralian music. They commenced in 1987. Allen was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1993.[70][71]
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| ARIA Music Awards of 1993 | Peter Allen | ARIA Hall of Fame | Inductee |
Peter Allen won aGolden Globe for Best Original Song for "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)" in 1981.[72]
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 39th Golden Globe Awards | Peter Allen, Burt Bacharach, Christopher Cross, & Carole Bayer Sager | Best Original Song - Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do) | Won |
Peter Allen was nominated twice for aGrammy Award for Song of the Year in 1974 for "I Honestly Love You" and in 1981 for "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)".[73]
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 24th Annual Grammy Awards | Peter Allen & Jeff Barry | Song of the Year - I Honestly Love You (Single) | Nominated |
| 17th Annual Grammy Awards | Peter Allen, Burt Bacharach, Christopher Cross, & Carole Bayer Sager | Song of the Year - Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do) | Nominated |
Since 1986, theMAC Awards are presented annually by the Manhattan Association of Cabarets to those who have made a contribution to live entertainment. Peter Allen received the Lifetime Achievement Award in 1987.[74]
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st Annual MAC Awards | Peter Allen | Lifetime Achievement Award | Won |
Peter Allen won The National Academy of Concert and Cabaret Artists Award for Best Male Vocalist in 1981. Allen received the award during his performance at Radio City Music Hall in January 1981.[75]
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | Peter Allen | Best Male Vocalist | Won |
TheOrder of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975, by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Government.[76]
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Peter Allen | Order of Australia, Member in the General Division (AM) - for service to the performing arts, particularly as a songwriter. | Won |
The Ruby Awards were presented annually byAfter Dark for distinguished work in the entertainment field. In 1978, Peter Allen received the Ruby Award for Performer of the Year.[77]
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8th Annual Ruby Awards | Peter Allen | Performer of the Year | Won |
Sources
