Barry was born as 'Barry Alan Pincus' to Harold Pincus and Edna Manilow. His father was of Irish and Jewish descent, and his mother, Edna, was Jewish on both sides. He was raised in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn, attending Brooklyn's Eastern District High School. After his high school graduation in 1961, Manilow enrolled at The Juilliard School, while working at CBS to pay his expenses. At CBS in 1964 Manilow met Bro Herrod, a director, who asked him to arrange some public domain songs for a musical adaptation of the melodrama, 'The Drunkard'. Instead, Manilow wrote an entire original score. The musical became a success and ran Off-Broadway for eight years at the 13th Street Theatre in New York. Manilow then earned money by working as a pianist, producer, and arranger. He has said of that time that he played piano for anybody: " If the check cleared, I was there."

Manilow also worked as a commercial jingle writer/singer, an activity that continued well into the 1970s. He penned many of the jingles that he performed, including those for Bowlene Toilet Cleaner, State Farm Insurance ("Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there..."), Stridex acne cleanser, and Band-Aid ("I am stuck on Band-Aid, 'cause Band-Aid's stuck on me!" sang a jubilant struggling actor named John Travolta), among others. His singing-only credits include Kentucky Fried Chicken, Pepsi, Jack in the Box, Dr Pepper, and the famed Mc Donald's" You Deserve a Break Today " campaign. Manilow won two Clio Awards in 1976 for his work for Tab and Band-Aid.

By 1967, Manilow was the musical director for the WCBS-TV series 'Callback'. He next conducted and arranged for Ed Sullivan's production company, arranging a new theme for 'The Late Show', while still writing, producing, and singing his radio and television jingles. At the same time, he and Jeanne Lucas performed as a duo for a two-season run at New York's Upstairs at the Downstairs club.Manilow's well-known association with Bette Midler began at the Continental Baths in New York City. He accompanied her and other artists on the piano from 1970 to 1971, and Midler chose Manilow to assist with the production of her first two albums, the Platinum-certified 'The Divine Miss M' (1972) and The Gold-plus 'Bette Midler' (1973), and act as her musical director on the 'The Divine Miss M' tour. Manilow worked with Midler for four years, from 1971 to 1975. In 1974, Bell Records released Manilow's first album, 'Barry Manilow', which offered an eclectic mix of piano-driven pop and guitar-driven rock music, including a song that Manilow had composed for the 1972 war drama 'Parades'.

Among other songs on the album were "Friends", "Cloudburst", and "Could It Be Magic"(the latter's music was based on Chopin's "Prelude in C Minor, Opus 28, Number 20", and provided Donna Summer with one of her major hits. It was also covered by Take That in the 1990s, as an up-beat disco version of the song. Take That have since performed Manilow's original version in their Beautiful World Tour). Midler allowed Manilow to sing three of the songs from the album during the intermissions in her show. As a result of a corporate takeover, Bell Records, along with other labels, was merged into a new entity named Arista Records, under the leadership of Clive Davis, who seized the opportunity to drop many artists. However, after seeing Manilow perform as the opening act at a Dionne Warwick concert, he was convinced that he had a winner on his hands; a relationship lasting decades ensued.

The partnership began to gain traction in 1974, with the release of Manilow's second album, 'Barry Manilow II', on Bell Records (and later reissued on Arista), which contained the breakthrough number-one hit, "Mandy". Manilow had not wanted to record "Mandy"(originally titled "Brandy", written and recorded by Scott English) -- but the song was included at the insistence of Clive Davis. Following the success of 'Barry Manilow II', the first Bell Records album release was re-mixed and re-issued on Arista Records as 'Barry Manilow I'. When Manilow went on his first tour, he included in his show, "A Very Strange Medley", a sampling of some of the commercial jingles that he had written or sung. Beginning with Manilow's March 22, 1975, appearance on American Bandstand to promote 'Barry Manilow II' (where he sang "Mandy" and "It's A Miracle"), a productive friendship with Dick Clark started. Numerous appearances by Manilow on Clark's productions of 'Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve', singing his original seasonal favorite "It's Just Another New Year's Eve", 'American Bandstand' anniversary shows, 'American Music Awards' performances and his 1985 television movie 'Copacabana' are among their projects together.

"Mandy" was the start of a string of hit singles and albums that lasted through the rest of the 1970s to the early 1980s, coming from the multi-platinum and multi-hit albums 'Tryin' to Get the Feeling', 'This One's for You', 'Even Now' and 'One Voice'. Despite being a solid songwriter in his own right, Manilow has had great success with songs by others. Among the hits which he did not write are "Mandy,"" Tryin' to Get the Feeling Again", "Weekend in New England"(by Randy Edelman), Looks Like We Made It,"" Can't Smile Without You" and "Ready to Take a Chance Again". Ironically, another of the songs Manilow did not write was his number one hit " I Write The Songs,"(by Bruce Johnston of The Beach Boys). According to album liner notes, Manilow did, however, co- produce them with Ron Dante and arrange them.

Manilow's breakthrough in Britain came with the release of 'Manilow Magic - The Best Of Barry Manilow', also known as 'Greatest Hits'. On its initial release it was accompanied by a large television advertising campaign, but the album was only available by mail order on the "Teledisc" label. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, ABC aired four variety television specials starring and executive produced by Manilow. 'The Barry Manilow Special' with Penny Marshall as his guest premiered on March 2, 1977 to an audience of 37 million. The breakthrough special was nominated for four Emmys and won in the category of "Outstanding Comedy-Variety or Music Special". 'The Second Barry Manilow Special' in 1978, with Ray Charles as his guest, was also nominated for four Emmys. "Ready To Take A Chance Again" was nominated that year for the "Best Original Song" Oscar. 'Copacabana' would later take the form of a musical television movie, starring Manilow, and three musical plays. On February 11, 1979, a concert from Manilow's sold-out dates at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles, California was aired on HBO's series 'Standing Room Only', which was the first pay-television show to seriously challenge network primetime specials in the ratings. From the same tour in 1978, a one-hour special from Manilow's sold out concert at the Royal Albert Hall aired in the UK.

On May 23, 1979, ABC aired 'The Third Barry Manilow Special', with John Denver as his guest. This special was nominated for two Emmy awards and won for "Outstanding Achievement in Choreography". In 1980, Manilow's 'One Voice' special, with Dionne Warwick as his guest, was nominated for an Emmy for "Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction". The endowments were part of a continuing endeavor by Manilow to recognize and encourage new musical talent.

In 1984 Manilow released a collection of original barroom tunes '2:00 AM Paradise Cafe', a jazz/ blues album that was recorded in one live take in the studio. In 1984, Showtime aired a documentary of Manilow recording the album with a number of jazz legends, such as Sarah Vaughn and Mel Tormé. In 1984 and 1985, England aired two one-hour concert specials from his National Exhibition Centre (NEC) concerts. In 1985, Manilow left Arista Records for RCA Records. There he released the pop album 'Manilow', and began a phase of international music, as he performed songs and duets in French, Spanish, Portuguese and Japanese, among other languages. The 'Manilow' album was a complete about face from the 'Paradise Cafe' album, containing a number of tracks that were of a modern uptempo and synthesized quality. In 1985, Japan aired a concert special Manilow did there where he played "Sakura" on the koto.

In his only lead acting role, he portrayed Tony Starr in a 1985 CBS film based on 'Copacabana' which also featured Annette O'Toole as Lola Lamarr and Joseph Bologna as Rico. This was named one of the top TV specials of the year by 'TV Guide' magazine. Manilow penned all the songs for the movie, with lyrics provided by established collaborators Bruce Sussman and Jack Feldman. RCA records also released a 'soundtrack album' of the movie. In October 1986, Manilow, along with Bruce Sussman, Tom Scott, and Charlie Fox went to Washington, D.C. for two days of meetings with legislators, including lunch with then Senator Al Gore (D-TN). They were there to lobby against a copyright bill put forward by local television broadcasters that would mandate songwriter-producer source licensing of theme and incidental music on syndicated television show reruns and would disallow use of the blanket license now in effect. The songwriters said without the blanket license, artists would have to individually negotiate up front with producers, without knowing if a series will be a success. The license now pays according to a per-use formula. Manilow said that such a bill would act as a precedent for broadcasters to get rid of the blanket license entirely.

The following year, Mc Graw-Hill published his autobiography 'Sweet Life: Adventures on the Way to Paradise' which had taken him about three years to complete. While promoting his autobiography, Manilow defended his music in a telephone interview: "I live in laid-back L.A., but in my heart, I'm an energetic New Yorker and that's what has always come out of my music. I've always been surprised when the critics said I made wimpy little ballads". Manilow returned to Arista Records in 1987 with the release of 'Swing Street'. The album contained a mixture of traditional after-dark and techno jazz. It contained "Brooklyn Blues", an autobiographical song for Manilow, and "Hey Mambo" an uptempo Latin style duet with Kid Creole, produced with the help of Emilio Estefan, Jr., founder of Miami Sound Machine.

In March 1988, CBS aired Manilow's 'Big Fun on Swing Street' special that featured songs and special guests from his 'Swing Street' and '2:00 AM Paradise Cafe' albums including Kid Creole and the Coconuts, Phyllis Hyman, Stanley Clarke, Carmen Mc Rae, Tom Scott, Gerry Mulligan, Diane Schuur, Full Swing, and Uncle Festive, a band within Manilow's band at the time. The special was nominated for two Emmys in categories of "Outstanding Lighting Direction (Electronic): For a Variety/Music or drama series, a miniseries or a special" and won in the category of "Outstanding Art Direction for a Variety or Music program". England also aired another NEC one-hour concert special Manilow did while on his 'Big Fun Tour de Force' tour.

In 1988, he performed "Please Don't Be Scared" and "Mandy/Could It Be Magic" at 'That's What Friends Are For: AIDS Concert '88', a benefit concert for the Warwick Foundation headed by Dionne Warwick and shown on Showtime a couple of years later. In the 1988 Walt Disney Pictures animated feature 'Oliver & Company' Bette Midler's character sang a new Manilow composition called "Perfect Isn't Easy". The 1989 release of 'Barry Manilow', which contained "Please Don't Be Scared", "Keep Each Other Warm" and "The One That Got Away", ended Manilow's streak of albums of original self-written material. Except for two songs, the songs were neither written nor arranged by himself and was the beginning of a phase of his recording career consisting of covers and compilations.

In 1989, Manilow put on a show named 'Barry Manilow at the Gershwin' from April 18 to June 10, 1989 where he made 44 appearances. By coincidence, the Gershwin Theatre (also known as the Uris Theatre) was the same one where 'Barry Manilow Live' was recorded in 1976. A bestselling 90-minute video of the same show was released the following year as 'Barry Manilow Live On Broadway'. The Showtime one-hour special 'Barry Manilow SRO On Broadway' consisted of edited highlights from this video. Manilow followed this set of shows with a sold out world tour of the Broadway show.

In the 1990s, Manilow released a number of cover tunes. It started with the 1989 release 'Barry Manilow', continued with his 1990 Christmas LP 'Because It's Christmas'. Consequent "event" albums followed including: 'Showstoppers', a collection of Broadway songs (1991), 'Singin' with the Big Bands' (1994) and a late 1970s collection 'Summer of '78' (1996) which included the hit "I Go Crazy", formerly a hit for Paul Davis in 1978. The decade ended with Manilow recording a tribute to Frank Sinatra 'Manilow Sings Sinatra' (1998) released months after Sinatra's death.

In 1990, Japan aired 'National Eolia Special: Barry Manilow On Broadway' where he sang the title song "Eolia", which was used as a song there in a commercial for an air conditioner company of the same name, as well as other songs from his 1989-1990 'Live on Broadway' tour. In the early 1990s, Manilow signed on with Don Bluth to compose the songs with lyricists Jack Feldman and Bruce Sussman for three animated films. He co-wrote the Broadway-style musical scores for 'Thumbelina' (1994) and 'The Pebble and the Penguin' (1995). The third film, entitled 'Rapunzel', was shelved after the poor performance of 'Pebble'. Manilow was also to be cast as the voice of a cricket. Manilow also composed the score and wrote two songs with Bruce Sussman for 'Disney Sing Along Songs: Let's Go To The Circus'.

On February 19, 1992, Manilow testified before the Subcommittee on Intellectual Property and Judicial Administration House Committee in support of H.R. 3204 'The Audio Home Recording Act of 1991'. The bill was signed into law on October 28, 1992 by President George H. W. Bush. The Act, a historic compromise between the consumer electronics and music industries, became effective immediately. In 1993, PBS aired, as a fundraiser, 'Barry Manilow: The Best of Me', which was taped at Wembley Arena in England earlier that same year. The BBC also played a one-hour version of the same show including "The Best of Me", sung during the concert, as a bonus song or "lucky strike extra" as Manilow says, not seen in 'The Greatest Hits...and then some', the video release of the show; however, the song was included on the DVD of the same title, with Manilow seated in front of a black curtain, lip-syncing to the recording. Manilow branched out in another direction and, with long-time lyricist Bruce Sussman, launched 'Copacabana', a musical play based on previous Manilow-related adaptations. They wrote new songs and it ran for two years on the London West End, and a tour company formed.

In December 1996, A&E aired 'Barry Manilow: Live By Request', the first of his two 'Live By Request' appearances. The broadcast was A&E's most successful music program, attracting an estimated 2.4 million viewers. The show was also simulcast on the radio. In March 1997, VH-1 aired 'Barry Manilow: The Summer of '78', a one-hour special of Manilow solo at the piano being interviewed and playing his greatest hits as well as songs from 'Summer of '78' his latest release at the time. In another collaboration between Manilow and Sussman they co-wrote the musical 'Harmony', which previewed October 7 to November 23, 1997 at the La Jolla Playhouse in La Jolla, California. Later in 2003, 'Harmony' was originally scheduled for a tryout run in Philadelphia before going to Broadway, but was canceled after financial difficulties. After a legal battle with Mark Schwartz, the show's producer, Manilow and Sussman in 2005 won back the rights to the musical.

On October 23, 1999, NBC aired the two-hour special 'Star Skates Salute to Barry Manilow' taped at the Mandalay Bay Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada featuring numerous figure skaters performing to Manilow's music. Manilow also performed as well.

In the year 2000, Manilow had two specials, 'Manilow Country' and 'Manilow Live!', taped over two consecutive days at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center in Nashville, Tennessee. On April 11, 2000, The Nashville Network (TNN) aired the two-hour 'Manilow Country', which featured country stars Trisha Yearwood, Neal Mc Coy, Deana Carter, Jo Dee Messina, Lorrie Morgan, Kevin Sharp, Lila Mc Cann, Gillian Welch and Jaci Velasquez singing their favorite Manilow hits with a "country" twist; at which Manilow also performed. This "special" was TNN's first High Definition (HD) broadcast and became one of TNN's highest rated concert specials.

In June 2000, Direct TV aired the two-hour concert special 'Manilow Live!' where Manilow had his band, a 30-piece orchestra, and a choir. This HDTV special documented the concert tour at the time with the greatest hits of his career and was also released to video. Also that year, he worked with Monica Mancini on her Concord album 'The Dreams of Johnny Mercer' which included seven songs Manilow wrote to Mercer's lyrics. Meanwhile, Manilow's record contract with Arista Records was not renewed due to new management. He then got a contract at Concord Records, a jazz-oriented label in California, and started work on the long-anticipated concept album, 'Here at the Mayflower'. The album was another eclectic mix of styles, almost entirely composed and produced by Manilow himself.

While Manilow was at Concord Records, the Barry Manilow Scholarship was awarded for four consecutive years from 2002 to 2005 to the six highest-achieving students to reward excellence in the art and craft of lyric writing. The UCLA Extension course "Writing Lyrics That Succeed and Endure," taught by long time Manilow collaborator, Marty Panzer, and each student received three additional" master class "advanced sessions as well as a three-hour private, one-on-one session with Mr. Panzer. Scholarship recipients were selected by the instructor based on progress made within the course, lyric writing ability, and the instructor's assessment of real potential in the field of songwriting. In February 2002, Manilow's recording career bounced back into the charts when Arista released a greatest hits album, 'Ultimate Manilow'. On May 18, 2002, Manilow returned to CBS with 'Ultimate Manilow', his first special at the network since his 'Big Fun on Swing Street' special in 1988. The special was filmed in the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, California and was nominated for an Emmy in the category of" Outstanding Music Direction ". In March 2006, Manilow's engagement was extended through 2008.

Manilow returned to Arista Records under the guidance of Davis for a new album of cover versions released on January 31, 2006 called 'The Greatest Songs of the Fifties'. Manilow said he was blown away with the idea, which Davis presented to him when he visited his Las Vegas show. "When he suggested this idea to me, I slapped my forehead and said, 'Why hasn't anyone thought of this idea?'" Manilow said." But of course there is only one Clive Davis. I feel honored and terribly fortunate to be working with him again after all these years. It's like coming home."The album included classic songs from that decade, like" Are You Lonesome Tonight?"and" Unchained Melody ". It was an unexpected hit, debuting at number one in the Billboard 200, marking the first time a Manilow album debuted at the top of the album chart as well as the first time a Manilow album has reached number one in 29 years. It was eventually certified Platinum in the U.S., and sold over three million copies worldwide.

In March 2006, PBS aired 'Barry Manilow: Music and Passion', a Hilton concert taped exclusively for the network's fundraising drive. Manilow was nominated for two Emmys, winning for "Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program". A sequel album to his best-selling fifties tribute album, 'The Greatest Songs of the Sixties' was released on October 31, 2006 including songs such as "And I Love Her" and "Can't Help Falling in Love". It nearly repeated the success of its predecessor, debuting at #2 in the Billboard 200.

In January 2007, Manilow returned to his hometown of New York City for three shows at Madison Square Garden. One highlight was the showing onscreen of Manilow performing in one of his first television appearances while the "live" Manilow played along onstage. "The Greatest Songs of the Seventies", released on September 18, 2007 was a follow-up album to the record-breaking previous two albums "Greatest Songs of the Fifties" and "Greatest Songs of the Sixties".

Manilow returned to the road in 2007. Several shows were played on the east coast of the United States in August 2007. Four more shows in Uniondale, New York, East Rutherford, New Jersey, Cleveland, Ohio, and Detroit, Michigan, took place in December 2007. Manilow launched another short tour in early 2008, visiting several large venues including the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota. 'Barry Manilow: Songs from the Seventies', a PBS concert special based on "The Greatest Songs of the Seventies", was taped in Manilow's home town, Brooklyn, New York, October 2007. The show aired on PBS December 2007 and was rebroadcast again New Year's Eve and New Year's Day 2009. He appeared on American Idol on February 3, 2009 during Hollywood Week to give advice to the contestants.

In October 2009, Manilow TV, a monthly video subscription service, was launched. Once a month, Barry Manilow picks a concert from his personal archive to show to subscribers. The video changes monthly. The first month, Episode #1, showed performances from April 20 & 21, 1996 at Wembley Arena in London. It is confirmed as of October 7, 2009 that Manilow will be concluding his Resident show at the Hilton "Ultimate Manilow The Hits" on December 30, 2009. Manilow will open his new show at the Paris Hotel & Casino at Las Vegas in March of 2010. The show is simply titled "Manilow Paris Las Vegas".

On January 26, 2010 Manilow released his new album 'The Greatest Love Songs of all Time'.Throughout his career, Barry Manilow has made media headlines on various subjects from his health to crashing his Range Rover.

His mother, Edna Manilow, explained how her son got a scar on his right cheek near his nose: " How did you notice that? The scar on his cheek here? Well, when he was little, he had a little girlfriend, Elizabeth, and she pushed him and he fell and I didn't pay too much attention to it and then it started infecting -- you know, it got an infection, and I had to take him to the hospital and it healed. But it stayed, obviously, you all noticed it. He puts on make-up."

On October 25, 1978, one hour before his scheduled debut at the Olympia Theatre he fractured his ankle. Manilow was rushed to a doctor who taped the injury minutes before he stepped onstage. Manilow insisted on going on and doing his complete show, which included an intricate disco dance in the popular "Copacabana" production number.

In an April 1979 Ladies Home Journal interview, Manilow admitted to experimenting with marijuana, stating he lost the taste for it quickly.

On February 4, 1982 Manilow, who was bedridden in a Paris hotel with bronchial pneumonia, had been ordered by doctors to cancel a nine-concert European tour. He was ordered to remain in bed for at least a week and would probably return to his Los Angeles home when he was able to travel, said publicist Heidi Ellen Robinson. Manilow became ill in Paris earlier that week after completing a month-long United Kingdom tour.

Manilow sprained his ankle October 6, 1983 on the stage at London's Royal Festival Hall while performing at a sold-out benefit concert before the Prince and Princess of Wales, who hosted the show. Manilow was treated and released from a London hospital.

Manilow made headlines when on December 7, 1986 he underwent emergency oral surgery at the Hospital of the Good Samaritan in Los Angeles to remove a non-cancerous cyst in his upper jaw that exploded. Three days later he was released in good condition from the hospital. During the emergency, he used his friend Elizabeth Taylor's dental surgeon.

On May 13, 1989 Manilow was rushed to Lenox Hill Hospital during intermission at Broadway's Gershwin Theater cancelling the second half of his show. His agent Susan Dubow said he was "feeling fine" after being forced from the Broadway stage because of an adverse reaction to medication prescribed for a stomach ailment. Dubow also added that Manilow was ready to return to the stage to complete the run of his concert show, which was then extended one week to June 3.

In 1989, Manilow made headlines again when he told Us Magazine he was hoping for a dinner invitation from his new Bel-Air neighbors, Ronald and Nancy Reagan, but complained they cramp his style of sunbathing in the nude. " I thought it was pretty hot, but there is Secret Service all over the place. I always know when they are coming home because of all the helicopters. If I am out there sunbathing in the nude, I go, 'S---, the Reagans are coming home.' But, who knows, maybe they will invite me over for dinner one night."

In 1989 an American tabloid claimed he was engaged to porn star Robin Byrd. On a June 22, 1989 appearance on 'The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson', Manilow was asked by Carson about the headline story. He disputed the story telling Carson he is just friends with Byrd and an innocent picture was taken and that there is no truth to them being engaged. After he met Byrd, his band gave him a videotape of 'Debbie Does Dallas' as a present for his birthday. Manilow added to Carson that he can't watch his friend doing that.

To help with the aftermath of Hurricane Hugo in 1989 which affected the Charleston, South Carolina, area, Manilow held a benefit concert November 12, 1989 at the University of South Carolina's Carolina Coliseum in Columbia, where the $10 tickets sold out in three hours, and asked concertgoers to bring canned food to be donated to residents in disaster areas. Before his concert, Mayor T. Patton Adams named that day "Barry Manilow Day" and Manilow presented the Red Cross and the Salvation Army with checks of $42,500 each.

On February 27, 1992, Manilow was the Master of Ceremonies for friend Elizabeth Taylor's 60th birthday bash at Disneyland in Anaheim, California and sang "I Made It Through the Rain" to Taylor who was accompanied by her eighth husband, Larry Fortensky.

On January 15, 1994, three hours before showtime Manilow abruptly canceled a concert at the Convention Center in Atlantic City, New Jersey, disappointing thousands of fans who had braved freezing temperatures to see him perform at an Ethnic Pride and Heritage Festival to benefit the Community Foundation of New Jersey as well as United Hospitals Medical Center Foundation and Newark Museum in Newark during the pre-inaugural activities for then New Jersey Governor-elect Christie Whitman. Manilow said in a statement that he was specifically told in writing the concert would be part of a non-partisan event. Donald Trump stepped in and shuffled his entertainment schedule at Trump Plaza and dispatched Paul Anka to substitute for Manilow. The charities went after Manilow for the $200,000 advance he took for the concert which he refunded over a month later.

In another headline story, Manilow, on February 8, 1994, sued Los Angeles radio station KBIG (104.3 FM), seeking $13 million in damages and $15 million in punitive damages because their ad was causing irreparable damage to his professional reputation. The ad, a 30-second spot introduced that January 31, suggested that people listen to KBIG because it does not play Manilow's music. The lawsuit was filed in Orange County Superior Court by Manilow's attorney C. Tucker Cheadle of Hastings, Clayton & Tucker in Los Angeles. Two days later, KBIG/104.3 FM agreed to drop the commercial poking fun at the singer, but a lawyer representing his business interests stopped short of agreeing to withdraw a $28 million lawsuit.

On February 20, 1996, just after noon, Manilow wrecked his 1993 Range Rover in a four-vehicle crash on a rain-slick interstate in Los Angeles while heading to his Bel-Air home. No one was injured in the accident. Manilow, who wasn't hurt, stood on the shoulder of Interstate 5 signing autographs and posing for snapshots until an aide showed up and took him home, his spokeswoman Susan Dubow said.

In March 1996, Manilow had photorefractive keratectomy eye surgery done on one of his eyes. 'People' Weekly, in their June 26, 2000 issue, reported that Manilow had eye surgery done by Los Angeles doctor Robert K. Maloney, but incorrectly stated it was LASIK. Manilow is quoted saying he now connects with the audience instead of " seeing a blur." Manilow defended his doctor against comedian Kathy Griffin, who claims Maloney botched her LASIK eye surgery.

In October 1996, it was reported that Manilow sold his gated, Bel-Air home of 17 years with a recording studio for close to its $2.45 million asking price and was looking to buy another residence in the Los Angeles area. He had multiple offers on the 1950s home of with many pathways, a long driveway and city views. It finally went to a local television producer. The nearby Hotel Bel-Air supposedly regularly provided Manilow with room service.

On June 26, 1997, Manilow was diagnosed with bronchitis before a scheduled performance in Austin, Texas, his spokeswoman Susan Dubow said the following day. Four other shows also had to be postponed. Manilow was back on the road that July 8 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Dubow said this is only the second time in Manilow's career that illness forced him to postpone a performance. Arizona Court of Appeals Judge Philip Espinosa, in another notable headline story, sued Manilow over the volume of a December 23, 1993 concert he attended with his wife. The judge said in a lawsuit he has had a constant ringing in his ears and nearly blew his ears out. Espinosa sought unspecified damages, and the trial was set for September 23, 1997. The suit also names Manilow's production company, an Arizona concert promoter and the city of Tucson, which runs the convention center where the concert was held. In July 1997, to settle the suit it was reported that Manilow donated $5,000 to American Tinnitus Association, an ear-disorder association.

On May 22, 1999, Manilow was rushed to a Los Angeles hospital after suffering an adverse reaction to dental surgery. According to Manilow's spokesperson Susan Dubow, he spent two days in the hospital with an infected mouth and then was " resting comfortably at home." Since the initial operation in 1986 when Manilow had a benign tumor removed from the roof of his mouth he has had to have minor dental surgery several times over the years. It was following such a procedure that Manilow's mouth became infected, Dubow explained.

In October 2001, Manilow visited Ground Zero in New York City.

On May 28, 2003, Manilow injured his nose in the middle of night when he awoke disoriented and walked into a wall when he returned to his Palm Springs home after spending two weeks in Malibu working on longtime friend Bette Midler's upcoming Rosemary Clooney tribute album. He passed out for four hours after the accident but was OK, his manager said.

On July 29, 2003, Manilow had a complete upper and lower facelift, which includes the removal of drooping skin from the eyelids and the general tightening of facial skin. Manilow was photographed after the surgery with what looked like a surgical wrap under his chin while leaving a plastic surgeon's office wearing a disguise of dark glasses and a blonde wig in the streets of Beverly Hills, California in an effort to escape without recognition.

On January 31, 2004, Manilow was treated for stress-related chest pains during a 24-hour stay at the Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs, California. Manilow was rushed to the hospital after two days of arbitration in a lawsuit where he was fighting to win back the rights to the original stage musical "Harmony" from producer Mark Schwartz. Manilow was diagnosed with an atrial fibrillation. After his heart rate returned to normal, doctors permitted him to return home.

In what is called a " Platinum Package," Manilow offers fans a pre-concert meet-and-greet, champagne and photo session with front row seats, for a price: $1,500 each (the money goes to Manilow's foundation). Formerly, each participant was allowed to do this just once (Manilow's people did keep track). However, in recent years, his management has allowed repeaters: now it's once per person per year.

To help in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, for every US dollar donated by his fans to the American Red Cross through the Manilow Fund for Health and Hope website, Manilow personally matched, and the fund itself also matched, tripling the original donation. The fund delivered $150,000 in less than 48 hours to the American Red Cross, and hoped to raise a grand total of $300,000.. On July 14, 2005 Manilow appeared on, "Larry King Live" whereby the host alluded to the star's hushed social life. Manilow stated that he would hope fans concentrated on his music.

Manilow made headlines in June 2006 when Australian officials blasted his music between 9pm until midnight every Friday, Saturday and Sunday to deter gangs of youths from congregating in a residential area late at night. On July 18, 2006, Manilow released a tongue-in-cheek statement saying that the youths might like his music.

On August 29, 2006, Manilow had hip surgery at a Southern California hospital. According to his press release, he tore the labrum (cartilage) in both hips. When the symptoms of extreme pain and discomfort did not go away following preliminary treatment, an MRI arthogram was performed and the labrum tears were discovered.