Helen Maxine Lamond Reddy was born on 25 October 1941, in Melbourne, Australia, to singer and soap opera actress Stella Lamond, and comedy actor, producer and writer Max Reddy, of English, Irish, Scottish and Welsh descent. She is an Australian singer, actress and activist, best known for her hit “I Am Woman”.
So just how wealthy is Helen Reddy? Sources state that Reddy has amassed a fortune of over $3 million, as of early 2017, the main source of her wealth being her career in showbiz which began in the early ‘70s.
Helen Reddy Net Worth $3 million
Helen grew up in Melbourne, where she attended Tintern Grammar school. Her career in the entertainment industry began when she was only four years old, performing at the Tivoli Theatre in Perth, Australia with her parents, and then embarking on many national tours with them. During her teenage years she sang on radio and TV too.
In 1966 she won a talent contest on the Australian television show “Bandstand”, which enabled her to travel to New York City and record a single for Mercury Records. After that proved unsuccessful, she decided to stay in the USA and pursue a singing career, soon meeting her future manager and husband Jeff Wald who got her a record deal with Capitol Records. This resulted in her first hit single, the 1971 “I Don’t Know How to Love Him” from the Broadway musical “Jesus Christ Superstar”. Her popularity began to grow and her net worth started to increase too.
The following year she released the song “I Am Woman”, which she co-wrote with Peter Allen. After a slow start, it found its way to the top of the charts, eventually reaching No. 1. The song became a powerful feminist anthem, earning a Grammy Award, and seling over a million copies, boosting Reddy’s fortune.
Embracing the fame, Reddy enjoyed hit after hit throughout the ’70s, with the songs “Delta Dawn” and “Angie Baby” also reaching #1, plus numerous Top 40 hits, including “Peaceful”, “Leave Me Alone (Ruby Red Dress)”, “Keep on Singing” and “Ain’t No Way to Treat a Lady”, so becoming one of the world’s most successful female singers of the ’70s music scene. All contributed to her wealth.
During this time, she was also a familiar face on television. Aside from being a frequent guest on various talkshows, she also hosted the NBC late-night variety show “The Midnight Special”, and had her own variety show – “The Helen Reddy Show”, further improving her net worth.
She also pursued an acting career, landing the starring role of Nora in Walt Disney’s animated film “Pete’s Dragon”, and making a cameo appearance as a nun in the film “Airport 1975”. Her wealth grew larger.
In 1981 Reddy left Capitol and signed with MCA Records, going on to release two albums under the label, achieving one minor success with the single “I Can’t Say Goodbye to You”. As for television, the ’80s saw her appearing in series such as “The Love Boat”, “Fantasy Island” and “The Jeffersons”, and in the film “Disorderlies”. After a significant chart decline, she performed infrequently.
By the beginning of the next decade Helen had turned to musical theater, appearing in numerous productions both on Broadway and in London’s West End, such as in “Blood Brothers”, “Shirley Valentine”, “Anything Goes”, “Call Me Madam” and “The Mystery of Edwin Drood”. All added to her net worth.
The year 2000 saw Reddy appearing in the TV series “Diagnosis: Murder” and “Beast Master”, but ywo years later she retired from performing, and became a clinical hypnotherapist in Australia.
Meanwhile, she released her autobiography “The Woman I Am”, and also appeared in the film “The Perfect Host”, and had a recurring role in the TV series “Family Guy”. Then in 2012, she returned to touring and recording, but retiring again in 2015.
A high-profile feminist and campaigner on social issues, Reddy has released 17 albums, selling more than 15 million albums and 10 million singles domestically, and 25 million albums worldwide.
In her private life, Reddy was married three times. Her first marriage was to Kenneth Weate, from 1961 to 1966; they have one child together. In 1966 she married Jeff Wald, with whom she also had one child. After their divorce in 1983, she married Milton Ruth that same year, divorcing him in 1995. Sources believe she has remained single since then.
