Barbra Streisand Once Backed Out of Appearing on ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live’ — And Now We Know the Funny Reason Why!

There are many reasons a celebrity might back out of an appearance on a talk show, among them, scheduling conflicts, illness or maybe the host saying something that offends their sensibilities. In the case of Barbra Streisand and Jimmy Kimmel Live, it was because the camera wouldn’t catch her “good side.”

It seems that Barbra, 76, has a long-standing tradition of what side of her face she wants either photographed or filmed, and the set of Jimmy Kimmel’s late night talk show just didn’t work for her or her people. This info was revealed by Jimmy, 51, when he was talking to Andy Cohen on Bravo’s Watch What Happens Live on Monday, January 21. During their conversation, Andy, 50, wondered if Jimmy had ever had to switch things around on-stage to accommodate a guest’s needs, adding that he himself had.

Specifically, Andy asked, “If a guest wants you to swap around your set so the camera gets their best side, do you refuse? I’ve had to switch seats for Mariah Carey four times.” (Of course, in Andy’s case it’s literally swapping seats.)

Jimmy acknowledged that, yes, indeed, “I’ve had a guest ask for that and I said no.”

Immediately, Andy asked if that intended guest was Barbra, to which Jimmy said it was, adding that switching things around was the condition that her appearance was based on, particularly the fact that no one involved with the show would be allowed to talk about it. In other words, the people who tune into the show night after night would suddenly see things all turned around, with Jimmy’s desk and chair on the opposite side of his guests than it normally is, and everyone was supposed to just ignore that fact, even the following night when things would be switched back to the way they normally are.

Laughing at the memory, Jimmy said that he turned their request down, commenting, “I just don’t see how this will work.” Somehow, we think Barbra and Jimmy will both be fine even without her appearance.