There’s nothing really to say about the 20th Century show-biz phenomenon known as Liberace (birth name: ‘Wladziu Valentina Liberace’). Perhaps best to quote the opening of ‘The Song Of Bernadette’: “To those who believe, no explanation is necessary; to those who don’t believe, no explanation is possible.” Below are three terrific views of the man in action; you’ll see his formidable technique at work in his ‘Boogie-Woogie’ tribute from one of his Las Vegas shows as well as his extraordinary facility with stride piano in a 1940s short film, well before he was famous. And there’s also a charming little video in which we see a normal day in the Liberace household, followed by a view of the opening of his act, which finds him resplendent in an endless white fur coat. I’m not ashamed of my admiration and fondness for this freakishly weird and oddly poignant figure; the Liberace that he showed the world was a man of joy and unapologetic excess and exuberance. Nothing wrong with that, gold candlesticks and all.