Bacharach-David tunes began to adorn films beginning with "Lizzie" and "The Sad Sack" (both 1957). Though they provided memorable title songs for 1966's "Alfie" (sung by Cher) and "The Owl and the Pussycat" (1970), for which Bacharach also composed the score, they gained perhaps their greatest acclaim (filmwise), winning two Oscars for their work on "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" (1969), which included the infectious "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head". At the same time, the Bacharach-David musical "Promises, Promises", based on the 1960 Billy Wilder movie "The Apartment" and featuring the hit "I'll Never Fall in Love Again", had begun its three year run on Broadway, earning a 1969 Grammy for Best Score From an Original Cast Album. That same year, he also earned a second Grammy for Best Original Score Written for Motion Picture or Television ("Butch Cassidy"). The score for "Lost Horizon" (1973) signaled the end of his most prolific songwriting period, and he withdrew exhausted to a beach house, alienating both David and Warwick.
Bacharach's marriage to second wife Angie Dickinson did not survive the period of relative inactivity that ensued, and his relationship with next wife lyricist Carole Bayer Sager mixed romance and art. They wrote (along with Peter Allen and Christopher Cross) the Oscar-winning theme for "Arthur" (1981), and the following year, Ron Howard's "Night Shift" introduced "That's What Friends Are For". Old friend Dionne Warwick and a few friends (like Gladys Knight) scored a Number 1 hit in 1985 with the song, which served as a rallying cry for AIDS awareness and brought Bacharach his last Grammy to date. The 90s have seen a resurgence of vintage Bacharach as a new generation led by the likes of Oasis' Noel Gallagher and REM's Michael Stipe have discovered his music and paid homage to him in interviews and through recordings. Elvis Costello co-wrote with Bacharach (via fax and answering machine) the show-stopper "God Give Me Strength" for Allison Anders' "Grace of My Heart" (1996), and five classic Bacharach-David tunes brightened the film comedy "My Best Friend's Wedding" (1997). Though "Promises, Promises" proved too dated to revive, it has been staged at NYC's "Encores!" and L.A.'s "Reprise! Broadway's Best in Concert" Director-choreographer Gillian Lynne conceived "What the World Needs Now" (1998) a stage musical combining Bacharach-David songs with a book by Kenny Solms telling a 90s romance story.