Tina Turner

With 100 million records sold, American singer and icon Tina Turner (1939-2023) is one of the best-selling artists ever. She won as many as 12 Grammy Awards, the most prestigious awards in the music industry. The Queen of Rock 'n Roll was also the star of a few films.


French postcard by Ebullitions, no. 1.


Italian freecard by Promocards Kultural for Roma Palazzo della Espozioni, no. PC 2100. Photo: Herb Ritts.


Vintage postcard by Superior, no. PC 121. Tina Turner in Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (George Miller, 1985).

A bad marriage

Anna Mae Bullock, as the singer's real name is, was born in Brownsville, Tennessee, in 1939. As a child, she sang in church choirs and worked as a cotton picker.

She became famous in the 1960s as the female half of the duo Ike & Tina Turner. Ike was her husband. They formed a duo from 1960 to 1976 and celebrated successes with songs like 'River Deep - Mountain High' (1966), 'Proud Mary' (1971) and 'Nutbush City Limits' (1973).

In 1960, their son was born, but it was a bad marriage, in which Ike regularly abused his wife. Behind the scenes, he completely hassled her. 'I was living the life of a dead person,' she said about it in the haunting documentary Tina (2021).

Without Ike, she acted as the Acid Queen in the musical film Tommy (Ken Russell, 1975), which also starred Roger Daltrey and Elton John.

In 1978, the divorce was pronounced. It was agreed that Ike Turner could keep all possessions; Tina only stipulated that she could keep her stage name.


American freecard by Max Racks for Hanes Hosiery, 1996. Photo: Peter Lindbergh. Caption: Hanes - It's all about strength and beauty.


French postcard by Editions 'Humour à la Carte', Paris, no. ST-34. Tina Turner and Mel Gibson in Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (George Miller, 1985).

A coping process that would last a long time

In 1983, Tina Turner launched her solo career with 'Let's Stay Together'. When People magazine wanted to interview her about the successful start of her solo career, Turner decided to share her abuse story with the world. 'I never knew love,' she told People. 'Nobody ever loved me.' It was a harrowing but mostly brave start to a coping process that would last a long time.

In that decade, she had hits such as 'What's Love Got to Do with It' and 'Private Dancer'. The energy-effervescent global star thrilled stadiums all over the world. Her show in Rio de Janeiro, in 1988, attracted as many as 180 thousand visitors, still one of the busiest concerts ever.

At the time, she was so popular that she also landed a job in Hollywood and played a significant role in the action film Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (George Miller, 1985) with Mel Gibson. She also signed for the title song 'We don't need another hero', which became a world hit.

In 1988, she scored the no. 1 hit 'Tonight' with David Bowie, followed a short time later by 'The Best' (also known as 'Simply the Best'). In 2008 and 2009, she made her last world tour. After that, she removed herself from the limelight.

In 2013, she married German music producer Erwin Bach, with whom she had been together for many years. In 2018, she was honoured with a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. That year also saw the premiere of the musical 'Tina' about her life. At the end of her life, when she struggled with health problems, she was not spared suffering. Her eldest son, Craig, ended his life. Her youngest son, Ronnie, died in 2022. Tina Turner died at her home in Küssnacht, Switzerland, after a long illness in 2023.


French postcard by Media Com + Promotion de l'art et de la communication, record 67. Photo: Capitol. Postcard to promote the album 'Private Dancer' (1984).


Dutch postcard by Art Unlimited, Amsterdam, no. B 477. Photo: David McGough, 1985 / Sunshine. Caption: Tina Turner and Mick Jagger at Live Aid Concert.


Portuguese postcard.

Sources: Abel Bormans (De Volkskrant - Dutch), RTL Nieuws (Dutch), Wikipedia and IMDb.