Originally Called 'Pearl'

Ok...yes, initially the movie was supposed to be titled "Pearl" with Bette Midler playing Janis Joplin. However, Bette Midler refused to portray Joplin in a movie so soon after her death. She felt that the media needed to leave her alone for a while. When Midler refused to do "Pearl," rewrites were made in which Bette Midler and her manager, I believe, deleted some things and embellished others and renamed it "The Rose." So, yes, it is in fact very loosely based on the life of Janis Joplin.