Barbra's third musical in a row was "On a Clear Day You Can See Forever". 'Forever" paired her with the French star Yves Montand and movie-musical legend Vincente Minelli. Barbra and Minelli got along famously during filming. In contrast to her first 2 films, Barbra got along with everyone on set, although she and Montand were cordial at best. Tragically, Minelli was suffering from several personal tragedies during production; his wife left him for another man and his ex-wife Judy Garland died from a drug overdose. It cast a pall on the production. After filming for Forever was complete, Marty Erlichman urged Barbra to get back to live performing.

For her return, she chose a venue where no one had yet performed: the yet-to-be-completed International, a $60 million Las Vegas hotel and casino. Barbra, however, was owner Kirk Kerkorian's second choice. He had originally wanted Elvis Presley to open the hotel, but the King was unwilling to go through with the hassle of breaking in a new concert hall with the ineveitable problems that might occur. So Kerkorian offered Barbra $1 million in cash and stock for a 4-week appearance.

So she opened the International, but she bombed. Las Vegas was at that time a town of schoomers and crooners, where performers were intimate and affable with their audiences. Barbra failed to establish a rapport with her audience, making her appear aloof. The Los Angeles Times wrote, "Miss Streisand's appearance was a curious, cold and intensely disappointing 80 minutes' worth." Barbra cried in her dressing room. The next night, she went to see Peggy Lee, who was performing at another casino. Lee was fabulous with her audience, and after Barbra watched her, she made a few changes to her own show. By the time the Times came round again, her show "was a concert to remember."

Barbra's next picture was "The Owl and the Pussycat", which began filming in October 1969. It was Barbra's first nonmusical. She was determined to show herself as a true actress, and not just a singer who performed in movie-musicals. In this movie, Streisand plays a streetwise hooker who falls for a nerdy writer who works in a bookstore. This movie also contains Barbra's only nude scene, as she drops her robe before climbing into bed with her co-star. In the end however, she could not overcome her shyness and demanded it be removed from the picture.

Hello, Dolly! Premiered in December 1969. Because 'Funny Girl" had been such a success, everyone assumed "Hello, Dolly!" would do as well. However, the huge budget for the film made it necessary for it to be a huge hit if it was not to lose money. And lose money it did. Film historians have pointed to "hello, Dolly!" as the end of the Hollywood musical.