Celine Dion's History-Making Moments and the Disease Threatening Her Career _ ET
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00:00 (upbeat music)
00:02 Celine Dion, the superstar with a show stopping voice.
00:10 We celebrate the hit maker with perfect pitch.
00:16 What you never knew about Celine's humble start.
00:23 I'm the baby of 14 kids.
00:26 Only romance.
00:27 I never kissed another man in my life.
00:29 And career that gave us.
00:31 ♪ Home by myself ♪
00:35 ♪ Coming back to be that ♪
00:38 We revisit Celine's history making moments.
00:41 Your Royal Highness, Princess Diana.
00:43 And take a closer look at the disease
00:46 that is threatening her comeback.
00:48 I have hope.
00:49 This is ET Vault Unlocked, Celine Dion.
00:52 I cannot ask for anything better than that.
00:54 And itchy, so why not?
00:57 ♪ To be now ♪
01:00 Mother, sister, and the voice of a generation
01:03 celebrating the music powerhouse that is Celine Dion.
01:08 Welcome everyone to entertainment tonight.
01:10 We're unlocking all our favorite Celine moments
01:12 from the ET Vault as we learn more
01:13 about the rare medical condition
01:15 that has sidelined Celine from the stage indefinitely.
01:19 ♪ Stop coming back to me ♪
01:21 How are you?
01:22 Nice to meet you.
01:23 That's Cuisine, let's not be shy.
01:25 You smell great, so.
01:27 (laughing)
01:28 Cracking jokes and smiling, walking,
01:30 and speaking without struggle,
01:32 Celine stunned hockey players at their game
01:34 in Las Vegas in October.
01:36 It was the icon's first public outing since March of 2020,
01:40 10 months after she revealed the incurable condition
01:43 that derailed her career.
01:45 The very rare neurological disorder
01:47 called the stiff person syndrome.
01:50 With labored speech, Celine explained
01:52 severe muscle spasms forced her
01:54 to cancel all future performances.
01:56 Celine's sister Linda has reportedly been caring for her
01:59 ever since at the singer's Las Vegas home,
02:01 with older sister Claudette giving this grim update.
02:05 We can't find any medicine that works,
02:07 and there's little doctors or the family can do
02:10 to alleviate her pain.
02:11 I'm getting treatment from my doctors, taking medication,
02:16 but I'm still experiencing some spasm
02:19 and it's taking a lot longer for me to recover.
02:22 The symptoms are not that well managed.
02:25 Common medications are Valium or Klonopin,
02:28 which can help the muscles relax.
02:31 Unfortunately, these spasms affect
02:34 every aspect of my daily life.
02:37 And this is really me.
02:39 Oh yes, it is.
02:40 Celine appeared frail in her big screen acting debut,
02:43 playing herself in "Love Again."
02:45 She shot the film in 2020
02:47 and wrote five new songs for the rom-com.
02:49 ♪ So courage, don't you dare fail me now ♪
02:54 In one of our last interviews with Celine in 2019,
02:58 she was excited about her new chapter
02:59 and "Courage World Tour."
03:01 The woman that I am, the mother that I am,
03:04 it represents the whole new life for me.
03:07 I'm doing everything that I can to recuperate,
03:12 and I have hope.
03:14 But through it all,
03:15 Celine remains one of the best-selling artists of all time.
03:18 ♪ Baby, baby, baby, when you touch me like this ♪
03:23 To tell you the truth,
03:24 I didn't expect to hear my songs on the radio
03:27 and to be on the charts.
03:29 It's a dream come true.
03:30 11 number one hit singles, 27 studio albums,
03:34 five Grammys, more than 250 million records.
03:39 When you're happy in life and you do what you love,
03:42 I don't do show business to win awards.
03:46 I do show business because I love to sing.
03:48 ET's been with the superstar
03:49 for all five decades of her prolific career,
03:52 performing for fans, including royalty and presidents.
03:56 ♪ I will love you ♪
03:59 I had the privilege for singing
04:05 for the Prince Charles and Princess Diana.
04:07 They send you letters before and say,
04:09 "Don't talk to them if they don't talk to you."
04:11 And it makes you really nervous because you're afraid.
04:14 Here we go, here we go.
04:16 And the world watched as Celine sang
04:17 at the 1996 Olympics opening ceremony.
04:21 ♪ The power of love ♪
04:24 Lots of magic, lots of, a lot of pressure,
04:29 and the full stadium, and you know the world is watching.
04:32 Celine's estimated net worth, 800 million,
04:36 thanks to 15 world tours
04:37 and two record-breaking Vegas residencies.
04:40 The stage is my home.
04:42 It's the place that I feel the most comfortable.
04:44 If I can build a house on the stage,
04:46 I would do it.
04:46 ♪ For the power of love ♪
04:50 We knew Celine was destined for stardom
04:52 in our very first ET interview.
04:54 It was 1990, and at the start of what ended up
04:57 being her decade of domination.
04:59 I'm the baby of 14 kids.
05:03 We all sing.
05:03 ♪ Let us my heart beat now ♪
05:08 At age 22, this song off her debut English-language album
05:11 became a top 10 hit in the US,
05:13 pitting the French-Canadian against the American divas
05:16 of the day.
05:17 There's one Madonna, and there's one Whitney Houston,
05:19 and there's one Mariah Carey.
05:21 I just wanna be as I am.
05:23 ♪ You, you, ask me to ♪
05:26 ♪ I'm just my team, my life ♪
05:30 ET was on the set of Celine's music video
05:33 for another top 10 hit on her follow-up self-titled album,
05:36 which also gave us this iconic ballad.
05:39 ♪ Beauty and the Beast ♪
05:42 The 1992 track with Peebo Bryson
05:46 from Disney's Beauty and the Beast soundtrack
05:48 won Best Song at the Oscars,
05:49 where both nervously performed
05:51 in front of the biggest stars around.
05:53 One of my idols, Barbra Streisand.
05:57 But the song is not over.
05:58 I have to find my breath somewhere
06:01 and continue the song.
06:03 The awards kept coming.
06:04 The following year, the track helped Celine
06:06 win her first Grammy.
06:07 20 years later, I'm still singing that song on stage.
06:11 What a night for ya, huh?
06:12 It's unbelievable.
06:13 Even after winning her second and third Grammys in 1997,
06:17 Celine reminded us of her humble beginnings
06:19 as her dreams came true.
06:21 When I was a baby, I was watching the television set
06:24 and I wanted to be here.
06:26 ♪ Reach out to him ♪
06:29 Celine also had this full circle moment in the '90s,
06:32 getting to work with her idol.
06:34 ♪ Tell him ♪
06:37 The biggest thrill that I've had in show business.
06:40 ♪ Because you love me ♪
06:44 The decade was also a major moneymaker for Celine,
06:46 whose 15 concert tours have grossed over $1 billion.
06:50 ♪ Reach out for me ♪
06:53 In 1994, ET went behind the scenes
06:57 as the singer warmed up for her first world tour
07:00 from hitting the stage in LA.
07:01 This is what I go through every night.
07:03 (imitates engine revving)
07:05 (speaking in foreign language)
07:07 To signing autographs in a Montreal diner
07:09 near the forum where her mom was in the crowd.
07:12 (crowd cheering)
07:14 ♪ Ha ha ha ha ♪
07:16 ♪ Stayin' alive, stayin' alive ♪
07:18 Four years later on the Let's Talk About Love tour,
07:21 she channeled the Bee Gees,
07:22 Celine's secret to dazzling the crowd.
07:25 At the end of the show,
07:25 everybody's pretty tired of being seated and like this,
07:28 so why don't we just dance?
07:29 Lots of people, so I cannot ask
07:31 for anything better than that.
07:32 And itchy, so why not?
07:35 But Celine's success in the '90s
07:36 wouldn't be complete without this.
07:38 ♪ Every night in my dreams ♪
07:43 It's truly an epic in every sense of the word.
07:45 It just sweeps you out of the theater
07:47 with this incredible feeling.
07:49 Titanic was bigger than life.
07:51 It's like I can't wait to sing it
07:52 because I know that's what they wanna hear.
07:54 They wanna hear (imitates music)
07:57 and then I come and I'm like,
07:58 whoa, they scream, I'm like, yes, yes.
08:01 ♪ You're here ♪
08:05 ET was with Celine on the set of the music video in 1997.
08:09 Check.
08:09 (audience applauding)
08:11 Would you say this is the biggest
08:12 Hollywood premiere you've been to yet?
08:15 Definitely.
08:16 I just met Leonardo DiCaprio.
08:18 I'm so thrilled.
08:20 Titanic took home an historic 11 Academy Awards in 1998
08:25 and ET spoke with Celine right before she performed
08:27 her signature ballad on the Oscar stage.
08:30 The reason for all the bodyguards?
08:32 Well, Celine was wearing a $2.2 million
08:34 Heart of the Ocean necklace inspired by the film.
08:37 It feels very heavy but it feels very,
08:40 I'm honored I'm wearing the Titanic.
08:42 ♪ Forever this way ♪
08:45 Later that night, "My Heart Will Go On"
08:49 became Celine's second Oscar-winning hit
08:52 but check out this Titanic secret.
08:54 Celine's first impression of the song wasn't good.
08:57 James Warner started to play the song
09:00 and I'm looking at Rene and I'm going like this.
09:03 I didn't wanna sing the song.
09:06 I go there, I only sang it once.
09:08 The actual recording of the album is the demo
09:11 and they build the orchestra around it.
09:13 Thank God they didn't listen to me.
09:16 The ship is gonna suck us down.
09:18 More than 20 years after Titanic's release,
09:21 Celine reimagined the movie's mystique
09:23 on "The Late Late Show" with James Corden in Las Vegas.
09:25 ♪ I love you ♪
09:26 ♪ And I love the show ♪
09:30 Whose idea was that to recreate the iconic Titanic pose?
09:35 Their ideas, I mean James for sure and his crew.
09:38 (audience cheering)
09:41 Celine is undeniably the modern day queen of Vegas
09:47 with two residencies spanning over 16 years.
09:50 The 55-year-old made history
09:52 earning more than any other artist ever.
09:54 We're talking over a reported $680 million.
09:58 The show must go on.
10:00 Celine reportedly performed nearly 1,200 shows
10:02 selling over 4 1/2 million tickets in 2003.
10:06 ET was with the singer who was rocking a new cut
10:09 for opening night.
10:10 I fly, it's always in the way.
10:12 Wardrobe changes a lot, I'm a mommy
10:15 and I want quality time at home.
10:16 I don't wanna spend two hours doing my hair.
10:18 Lifeton City meant Celine didn't have to tour,
10:20 giving her and her husband Rene a chance to raise a family.
10:23 I live 30 minutes away from where the Coliseum,
10:28 from where I work.
10:29 I go home every night.
10:30 It's giving me an opportunity to have a stability.
10:33 It also gave her an opportunity to team up
10:35 with fellow Caesars Palace resident, Elton John.
10:39 Who's the bigger diva, you or Elton?
10:41 Together we're not beatable.
10:43 ♪ Shine a light, shine a light so bright ♪
10:46 She can sing anything.
10:47 She can sing the best ballad in the world.
10:48 She can sing classical stuff
10:50 and she can sing soul and she can sing rock and roll.
10:52 ♪ All by myself anymore ♪
10:56 The show's gonna be difficult to end.
11:03 The curtain dropped on her first residency,
11:05 A New Day, in 2007.
11:06 Three years later, Celine returned to the stage,
11:09 earning a reported half a million dollars a show.
11:11 She became the most profitable Vegas act
11:13 since Elvis Presley.
11:15 Fans got a behind the scenes look
11:16 at the singer's life and loves in Owns,
11:19 Celine, Three Boys and a New Show.
11:21 ♪ So here I am with open arms ♪
11:25 I love fashion, I love clothing.
11:33 This is John Galliano for Dior.
11:35 Do we know any girls in the world
11:40 who don't really like to be jeweled or dressed up?
11:43 I never met one.
11:45 Wow, oh my God.
11:48 Give us a spin, Celine.
11:49 This looks like the kind of outfit
11:51 that means you're gonna party 'til five in the morning.
11:53 Maybe six.
11:55 In 2019, Celine went showgirl chic at the Met Gala
11:58 and here's the truth,
12:00 this diva has always loved to play dress up.
12:03 I don't drink, I don't smoke, I don't do drugs.
12:07 I shop.
12:08 In 1995, ET was there as she browsed
12:11 the designer stores on the French Riviera.
12:13 Her biggest obsession?
12:15 How many shoes do you think you own?
12:17 3,000, 5,000.
12:21 I've heard 10,000.
12:23 Maybe, I didn't wanna say it.
12:25 Two decades later, ET returned to France with Celine.
12:29 That's where she revealed this behind the scenes secret.
12:32 You do your own makeup.
12:33 Oh yes I do, when I'm on stage or an interview
12:36 or I like to do it myself.
12:39 And surprise, another hidden talent.
12:41 I definitely would love to do some acting,
12:43 that's for sure.
12:44 I have different characters inside of me.
12:46 She made guest appearances on shows like The Nanny,
12:48 Touched by an Angel and All My Children.
12:51 ET was on set with Celine and Susan Lucci in 2007.
12:55 It was wonderful, we could be best friends.
12:57 Okay, well now we know each other.
13:02 We know each other.
13:03 Well, yeah, we know each other.
13:05 That was from my interview backstage
13:10 with Celine and Renee at the World Music Awards
13:12 all the way back in 2004.
13:14 Yeah, to quote one of Celine's songs,
13:16 the power of their love was real,
13:19 unconventional and unapologetic.
13:21 The duo truly lived up to their wedding vows
13:23 in sickness and in health.
13:26 ♪ You were my strength when I was weak ♪
13:29 Renee's with me all the time.
13:31 I will never find love like Renee again.
13:35 I have been still the luckiest woman in the world.
13:40 ♪ Because you loved me ♪
13:45 Celine's beloved husband of 21 years, Renee Angelil,
13:48 passed away in 2016 after bravely battling
13:50 three bouts of cancer.
13:52 And ET was there as their sweeping love story unfolded.
13:56 ♪ Where does my heart beat now ♪
14:00 I went at his office and I sang in front of him.
14:03 And I was 12 years old and I was not in love with him
14:06 when I met him because I didn't even know what love was.
14:09 Renee started as Celine's manager in 1980.
14:12 Despite Celine and Renee's 26 year age difference,
14:15 they eventually fell madly in love.
14:17 I got married to him the 17th of December
14:20 and I think I have a great life.
14:22 That Montreal wedding, well, it was over the top.
14:26 From the gown to that headpiece,
14:28 it was everything Celine dreamed of.
14:30 I wanted to have my prince of charm waiting for me.
14:34 Renee supported Celine throughout her career.
14:36 Then in 1999, it was her turn to be by his side
14:39 as he was diagnosed with throat cancer.
14:42 I cannot live in fear every day and say,
14:44 is he gonna die tomorrow?
14:46 The couple renewed their vows in 2000
14:48 when Renee was deemed cancer free.
14:51 However, in 2013, the cancer returned.
14:54 We don't know about tomorrow.
14:55 Renee passed away January 14th, 2016
14:59 and received a national funeral service
15:01 at Montreal's Notre Dame Basilica,
15:03 the same church where they wed.
15:05 Celine made her entrance holding hands
15:07 with their then five year old twins, Nelson and Eddie.
15:11 (singing in foreign language)
15:12 14 year old Renee Charles was linked arm in arm
15:15 with Celine's mother, Therese.
15:17 In one of the most poignant moments,
15:18 he took to the pulpit and spoke from the heart.
15:21 You are a tough act to follow,
15:23 but with your help, everything is gonna be fine.
15:27 (singing in foreign language)
15:31 It's wonderful to know that he's not suffering anymore.
15:35 I'm so thankful that the way that he passed,
15:39 he called me before my last performance.
15:42 He said, "I want you to have a good show tonight.
15:44 "I love you."
15:44 I said, "I love you too.
15:45 "I'll see you later, bye honey, bye."
15:47 And I never spoke to him again,
15:49 but I got three boys and he lives through them.
15:53 Even before Renee's death, Celine put family first,
15:56 often bringing her kids to work with her.
15:58 In 2002, E.T. was with the singer
16:00 on the set of a commercial co-starring Renee Charles.
16:03 You have a little co-star with you in the car.
16:06 He's 22 months old.
16:07 It is a great way to kind of keep him near you, right?
16:11 You bet.
16:12 In 2010, the twins were born.
16:13 Celine returned to work in Vegas five months later.
16:16 What's been the hardest thing for you?
16:17 When both of them wanna be held.
16:20 They're like 22 pounds each now.
16:23 Eddie has a very, very strong personality.
16:26 Nelson is very gentle, charming.
16:29 They both have, obviously, their unique personalities.
16:32 My oldest son, Arcee, he's into music a lot
16:35 and he's into sports, he's great in school.
16:37 Yep, Celine's a full-blown hockey mom.
16:40 She's been spotted in the stands at Arcee's games.
16:42 The now 22-year-old released his first EP in 2021.
16:46 Arcee's into Eminem and he's very much into rap music.
16:50 My twins, they play piano by themselves.
16:54 I don't know what they're gonna do,
16:55 but the music is in them for sure.
16:56 When are you gonna start singing?
16:58 I don't know about that.
16:59 I don't think I have the voice for it.
17:00 But he did have the guts for this.
17:02 At the 2016 Billboard Music Awards,
17:04 Arcee surprised his mom with the Icon Award.
17:07 It was her first live performance
17:09 four months after her husband's death.
17:11 ♪ Show must go on ♪
17:14 It was Renee's favorite song.
17:16 I turned around and I saw my son.
17:18 For him to come on stage, I knew it was very hard for him.
17:21 Having the privilege of being a mom,
17:24 it's my best reward.
17:27 These are my three magnificent children.
17:29 Thank you so much.
17:31 (audience cheering)
17:33 ♪ Are you okay, are you okay, E.T. ♪
17:36 That was just the taste of what it was like
17:38 whenever we were with Celine Dion.
17:40 She couldn't help but sing.
17:42 She's a good time.
17:43 She emanates joy from within.
17:45 Now we leave you with more of our favorite Celine serenades,
17:48 including one of my personal favorites.
17:50 Did you try to sing with Celine?
17:52 You tried to sing with Celine.
17:52 Good night, everybody.
17:54 ♪ Ah, ah, ah, ah, stayin' alive ♪
17:57 ♪ Like a virgin ♪
18:00 ♪ I'm a girl's best friend ♪
18:04 ♪ What a day, what a day, what a day ♪
18:06 ♪ What a beautiful day ♪
18:08 ♪ Ooh, honey, you got the move ♪
18:12 ♪ Like Jagger ♪
18:13 No, I'm sorry.
18:14 It's really hard for me not to sing.
18:16 ♪ I'm a single lady ♪
18:17 ♪ I'm a single lady ♪
18:18 ♪ I'm a single lady ♪
18:19 I feel like singing.
18:21 ♪ Because you love me ♪
18:24 [BLANK_AUDIO]