Huston eventually admits to her that he is actually an AWOL sergeant from the Army, and she tells him of her past in Florida. Rudge assumes that Huston is just another hanger-on, but Rose feels she has finally met her true love. The two take a cross-country trip to New York City, where Rose is scheduled to complete recording sessions. After discovering that Rudge arranged the meeting because he wants to sign Billy Ray to his label, Rose defiantly flees with a limousine driver named Huston Dyer. Billy Ray cruelly demands that she never perform his music again, and he rudely dismisses her. As such, she is determined to return to her Florida hometown, now as a superstar, and perform for the people from her past.įollowing a performance in Texas, Rose meets with country music star Billy Ray, whom she idolizes and whose songs she often covers in live shows. Though forthright and brassy, Rose is an insecure alcoholic and former drug user who seems to crave approval in her life. She is exploited and overworked by her gruff, greedy manager and promoter Rudge Campbell. In late 1969, Mary Rose Foster is a famous rock and roll diva known as 'The Rose.' In spite of her success, her personal life is lonely and exhausting. Midler performed the soundtrack album for the film, and its title track became one of her biggest hit singles.

The Rose was nominated for four Academy Awards including Best Actress in a Leading Role (Bette Midler, in her screen debut), Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Frederic Forrest), Best Film Editing and Best Sound. Originally titled Pearl (after Janis Joplin's nickname, which was also the title of her last album), the film's screenplay was revised and fictionalized after her family declined to allow the producers the rights to her story.

Loosely based on the life of Janis Joplin, the film follows a self-destructive rock star in the late 1960s, who struggles to cope with the pressures of her career and the demands of her ruthless business manager. The Rose is a 1979 American musical drama film directed by Mark Rydell, and starring Bette Midler, Alan Bates, Frederic Forrest, Harry Dean Stanton, Barry Primus, and David Keith.

The Rose & the Dagger by Renée Ahdieh