Bob Fosse | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Fosse inPal Joey (1963) | |
| Born | Robert Louis Fosse (1927-06-23)June 23, 1927 |
| Died | September 23, 1987(1987-09-23) (aged 60) Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1947–1987 |
| Spouses | |
| Partner | Ann Reinking (1972–1978) |
| Children | Nicole Fosse |
Robert Louis Fosse (/ˈfɒsi/ ⓘ; June 23, 1927 – September 23, 1987) was an American choreographer, dancer, actor, filmmaker, and stage director. Known for his work on stage and screen, he is arguably the most influential figure in the field ofjazz dance in the twentieth century.[1] He receivednumerous accolades including anAcademy Award, aBAFTA Award, threePrimetime Emmy Awards, nineTony Awards, and thePalme d'Or.
Fosse started his career acting in the musical productions ofCall Me Mister (1947),Billion Dollar Baby (1951), andPal Joey (1952). He transitioned into directing and choreographing musical works, winningTony Awards forchoreographingThe Pajama Game (1954),Damn Yankees (1955),Redhead (1959),Little Me (1963),Sweet Charity (1966),Pippin (1972),Dancin' (1978), andBig Deal (1986), as well as fordirectingPippin. He also worked onBells Are Ringing (1956),New Girl in Town (1958),How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (1961), andChicago (1975).
On film he played Hortensio in theMGM musicalKiss Me Kate (1953) and had his directorial debut with the musicalSweet Charity (1969). He won theAcademy Award for Best Director for the musical dramaCabaret (1972). He was Oscar-nominated for directing the dramasLenny (1974) andAll That Jazz (1979), the latter of which won thePalme d'Or at theCannes Film Festival. He is also known for directing the concert filmLiza with a Z (1972), which earned him thePrimetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Variety Special, and his final filmStar 80 (1983).
Fosse forged an uncompromising modern style, characterized byfinger-snapping, tiltedbowler hats,fishnet stockings, splayed gloved fingers, turned-in knees and toes, shoulder rolls, andjazz hands. Fosse's third wife was the actor–dancerGwen Verdon, with whom he collaborated on a number of theater and film projects.
Fosse was born inUptown, Chicago,Illinois, on June 23, 1927, to Norwegian-American father Cyril Kingsley Fosse, a traveling salesman forHershey,[2] and Irish-American mother Sarah Alice "Sadie" (née Stanton) Fosse.[3] He was the fifth of six children.[4][5][6]
He was drawn to dance and took lessons. When he was 13 years old, Fosse performed professionally in Chicago with Charles Grass as "The Riff Brothers".[7] They touredvaudeville and movie houses in Chicago, as well asUSO theaters and Eagles Clubs.[8] Many of these performances included shows atburlesque clubs such as the Silver Cloud and Cave of Winds. Fosse himself is quoted with saying, "I was sixteen years old, and I played the whole burlesque wheel." However, many of the women and promoters did not care that Fosse was underage working in adult clubs or that he would be exposed to sexual harassment from the burlesque women. Much of the erotica he saw would inspire his future work. In 1943 at the age of 15, Fosse would come to choreograph his first dance number and earn his first full credit as a choreographer in a film,Hold Evry'thing! A Streamlined Extravaganza in Two Parts, which featured showgirls wearing strapless dresses and performing a fan dance, inspired by his time in burlesque houses.[9]
After graduating fromAmundsen High School[10][11][12] in 1945, Fosse was recruited into theU.S. Navy toward the end ofWorld War II atNaval Station Great Lakes, where he was sent to be prepared for combat. Fosse petitioned his manager, Frederick Weaver, to advocate on his behalf to his superiors after his own failed attempts to be placed in theSpecial Services Entertainment Division.[9] Fosse was soon placed in the variety showTough Situation, which toured military and naval bases in thePacific Ocean.[citation needed]
After his discharge, Fosse moved to New York City in 1947 with the ambition of being the newFred Astaire. He began to study acting at the American Theatre Wing, where he met his first wife and dance partner, Mary Ann Niles (1923–1987).[13] His first stage role was inCall Me Mister, along with Niles.[14] In 1948Tony Charmoli danced inMake Mine Manhattan but gave the part to Fosse when the show toured nationally. Charmoli also found Fosse work as a dancer on the TV shows he was working on when Fosse returned from the tour.[15]
Fosse and Niles were regular performers onYour Hit Parade in its 1950–1951 season.Dean Martin andJerry Lewis saw their act in New York'sPierre Hotel and scheduled the couple to appear onThe Colgate Comedy Hour in 1951.[16]
Fosse was signed to anMGM contract in 1953.[17] His early screen appearances as a dancer includedGive a Girl a Break,The Affairs of Dobie Gillis, andKiss Me Kate, all released in 1953. Fosse's choreography of a short dance sequence duringFrom This Moment On inKiss Me Kate and his dance withCarol Haney brought him to the attention of Broadway producers.[18] InKiss Me Kate, Fosse starred alongsideHoward Keel,Kathryn Grayson, andAnn Miller. Fosse played Hortensio withinThe Taming of the Shrew dance sequences.[19]
During the late 1940s and early 1950s, Fosse transitioned from film totheatre. Fosse told an interviewer, "Jerry [Jerome Robbins] started me doing choreography. He gave me my first job as a choreographer [Pajama Game] and I'm grateful for that."[20]
In 1954 Fosse choreographed his first stage musical,The Pajama Game, followed byMy Sister Eileen andGeorge Abbott'sDamn Yankees in 1955. It was duringDamn Yankees when he first met rising starGwen Verdon, whom he married in 1960. For her work inDamn Yankees in 1956 Verdon won her firstTony Award for Best Actress in a Musical.[21] She had previously won a Tony for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical forCan-Can (1954). In 1957 Fosse choreographedNew Girl in Town, also directed by Abbott, and Verdon won her second Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical in 1958.[21]
Also in 1957 Fosse choreographed the film version ofThe Pajama Game, starringDoris Day. The next year, Fosse appeared in and choreographed the film version ofDamn Yankees, in which Verdon reprised her stage triumph as the character Lola. Fosse and Verdon were partners in the mambo number "Who's Got the Pain".[22] In 1959 Fosse directed and choreographed the stage musicalRedhead.[23] For his work onRedhead Fosse won the Tony Award for Best Choreography, while Verdon won her third Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical.Redhead also won the Tony Award for Best Musical.[24] Fosse's next feature was supposed to be the musicalThe Conquering Hero, based on a book byLarry Gelbart, but he was replaced as director/choreographer.
In 1961 Fosse choreographed the satirical Broadway musicalHow to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, starringRobert Morse. The story revolves around an ambitious man, J. Pierrepont Finch (Morse), who, with the help of the bookHow to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, rises from window washer to chairman of the board of the World Wide Wicket Company. The musical was an instant hit.[25][26] In 1963 Fosse was nominated for two Tony Awards, Best Choreography and Best Direction of a Musical forLittle Me, winning the former.[13] He choreographed and directed Verdon inSweet Charity in 1966.[27]
Fosse directed five feature films. His first,Sweet Charity (1969), starringShirley MacLaine, is an adaptation of the Broadway musical he had directed and choreographed. In 1972 Fosse directed his second theatrical film,Cabaret, starringLiza Minnelli,Michael York, andJoel Grey. The film is based on the1966 musical of the same name. In the traditional manner of musical theater, called an "integrated musical", every significant character in the stage version sings to express his or her own emotion and to advance the plot. In the film version, however, the musical numbers are entirelydiegetic. The film focuses on a romance between Sally Bowles (Minnelli), who performs at the Kit Kat Klub, and a young British idealist, Brian Roberts, played by York, set during the final days ofWeimar Germany. It was an immediate success among audiences and critics alike, winning eightAcademy Awards, including Best Director.Liza Minnelli andJoel Grey both won Oscars for their roles.[28] That same year, Fosse and Minnelli collaborated on theconcert filmLiza with a Z, earning Fosse anEmmy Award for both direction and choreography.[13]
In 1973 Fosse's work onPippin won him theTony Award for Best Direction of a Musical.[29] He was director and choreographer ofChicago in 1975, which starred Verdon.[30] In 1974 Fosse directedLenny, a biographical film about the controversial standup comedianLenny Bruce, portrayed byDustin Hoffman. Fosse was again nominated forBest Director; Hoffman also received a nomination for Best Actor.[31] Fosse performed a number inStanley Donen's 1974 film version ofThe Little Prince. According toAllMusic, "Bob Fosse stops the show with a slithery dance routine."[citation needed] In 1977 Fosse had a small role in the romantic comedyThieves.[32]
In 1979 Fosse co-wrote and directed a semi-autobiographical film,All That Jazz (1979), starringRoy Scheider, which portrayed the life of a womanizing, drug-addicted choreographer and director in the midst of triumph and failure.Ann Reinking appears in the film as the protagonist's lover, protégée, and domestic partner.All That Jazz won fourAcademy Awards, earning Fosse his third Oscar nomination for Best Director.[33] It also won thePalme d'Or at the1980 Cannes Film Festival.[34]Vincent Canby ofThe New York Times described the film as "Mr. Fosse's answer to8½ in whichFederico Fellini wittily examined his own life at a point when he feared his creativity was at an end".[35]
Writing forThe New Yorker in 1974,Pauline Kael was fond of Fosse, mentioning that she didn't know of "any other director who entered moviemaking so late in life and developed such technical proficiency", going on to say that she found Fosse "a true prodigy."[36]
Fosse's final film,Star 80 (1983), was a biographical movie, based on aPulitzer Prize-winning article, aboutDorothy Stratten, aPlayboyPlaymate who was murdered. The film was screened out of competition at the34th Berlin International Film Festival.[37] CriticRoger Ebert in his four-star review of the film wrote, "Although his Broadway musicals have been upbeat entertainments, he seems to see the movie camera as a device for peering into our shames and secrets...This is an important movie. Devastating, violent, hopeless, and important, because it holds a mirror up to a part of the world we live in and helps us see it more clearly."[38]
In 1986 Fosse wrote, choreographed, and directed the Broadway production ofBig Deal, which was nominated for five Tony awards, winning forBest Choreography, as well as five more for the revival ofSweet Charity at the nearbyMinskoff Theater, winning aTony Award for Best Revival.[9] Fosse began work on a film about gossip columnistWalter Winchell that would have starredRobert De Niro. TheWinchell script was written byMichael Herr. Fosse died before starting the project.[39]
Notable distinctions of Fosse's style included the use of turned-in knees, the "Fosse Amoeba", sideways shuffling, rolled shoulders, andjazz hands.[40] With Astaire as an influence, Fosse used props such as bowler hats, canes, and chairs. His trademark use of hats was also influenced by his own self-consciousness, according to Martin Gottfried in his biography of Fosse: "His baldness was the reason that he wore hats, and was doubtless why he put hats on his dancers."[25] Fosse used gloves in his performances because he did not like his hands. Some of his most popular numbers include "Steam Heat" (The Pajama Game) and "Big Spender" (Sweet Charity). The "Rich Man's Frug" scene inSweet Charity is another example of his signature style.
ForDamn Yankees, Fosse was inspired by the "father of theatrical jazz dance",Jack Cole.[25] In 1957 Verdon and Fosse studied withSanford Meisner to develop a better acting technique. According to Michael Joosten, Fosse once said: "The time to sing is when your emotional level is too high to just speak anymore, and the time to dance is when your emotions are just too strong to only sing about how you 'feel.'"[41]
InRedhead, Fosse used one of the first ballet sequences in a show that contained five different styles of dance: Fosse's jazz, acancan, a gypsy dance, amarch, and an old-fashioned English music hall number. DuringPippin, Fosse made the first television commercial for a Broadway show.[18]
Fosse married dance partner Mary Ann Niles (1923–1987) on May 3, 1947, in Detroit.[42] In 1952, a year after he divorced Niles, he married dancerJoan McCracken in New York City;[43] they divorced in 1959.[44]
His third wife was dancer and actressGwen Verdon, whom he met choreographingDamn Yankees, in which she starred.[45] In 1963 they had a daughter,Nicole Fosse, who later became a dancer and actress. Fosse's extramarital affairs put a strain on the marriage and by 1971 they were separated, although they remained legally married until his death in 1987. Verdon never re-partnered.[25][46][47] During their joint career, Fosse would continually take blame from critics while Gwen Verdon would get praise, no matter how much influence Verdon had on a production. However, Verdon always looked out for him and the Fosse family image, hosting grandiose cast parties and being Fosse's personal press secretary throughout their marriage.[9]
Fosse met dancerAnn Reinking during the run ofPippin in 1972. According to Reinking, their romantic relationship ended "toward the end of the run ofDancin'" (1978).[48] Reinking acted in his musical drama filmAll That Jazz, which was loosely based on Fosse's life.[49]
Fosse also dated actressesJessica Lange andDyan Cannon.[50][51]
In 1961 Fosse'sepilepsy was revealed when he had a seizure onstage during rehearsals forThe Conquering Hero.[25]Fosse's time outside of the rehearsal studio or theater was seldom spent alone. As stated in the biographyFosse bySam Wasson, "nights alone were murder on Fosse". To alleviate loneliness and insomnia brought on by his prescribed amphetamines, Fosse would often contact dancers he would work with and try to date them, making it hard for many to refuse his advances, but also giving him the affirmation of success he sought.[9]
Fosse died of a heart attack on September 23, 1987, atGeorge Washington University Hospital while the revival ofSweet Charity was opening at the nearbyNational Theatre.[4] He had collapsed in Verdon's arms near the Willard Hotel.[52] As he had requested, Verdon and Nicole Fosse scattered his ashes in the Atlantic Ocean offQuogue, Long Island, where Fosse had been living with his girlfriend of four years.[53] A month after his death, Verdon fulfilled Fosse's request for his friends to "go out and have dinner on me" by hosting a star-studded, celebrity-filled evening atTavern on the Green with Verdon, Reinking,Jessica Lange,Roy Scheider,Ben Vereen, andE. L. Doctorow attending.[54]
| Year | Title | Functioned as | Role | Venue | Notes | Ref. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Director | Choreographer | Performer | ||||||
| 1947 | Call Me Mister | No | No | Yes | Chorus member | U.S. tour | ||
| 1948 | Make Mine Manhattan | No | No | Yes | Ensemble member | |||
| 1950 | Dance Me a Song | No | No | Yes | Dancer | Royale Theatre, Broadway | [55] | |
| 1951 | Billion Dollar Baby | No | No | Yes | Champ Watson | Alvin Theatre, Broadway | [56] | |
| 1952 | Pal Joey | No | No | Yes | Joey Evans | Broadhurst Theatre, Broadway | Understudy | [57] |
| 1954 | The Pajama Game | No | Yes | No | — | [58] | ||
| 1955 | Damn Yankees | No | Yes | No | — | Adelphi Theatre, Broadway | [59] | |
| 1956 | Bells Are Ringing | No | Yes | No | — | Alvin Theatre, Broadway | [60] | |
| 1958 | New Girl in Town | No | Yes | No | — | 46th Street Theatre, Broadway | [61] | |
| 1959 | Redhead | Yes | Yes | No | — | [62] | ||
| 1961 | The Conquering Hero | No | Yes | No | — | ANTA Theatre, Broadway | Uncredited | [63] |
| 1961 | How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying | No | Yes | No | — | 46th Street Theatre, Broadway | [64] | |
| 1962 | Little Me | Yes | Yes | No | — | Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, Broadway | [65] | |
| 1963 | Pal Joey | No | No | Yes | Joey Evans | New York City Center, Broadway | [66] | |
| 1965 | Pleasures and Palaces | Yes | Yes | No | — | Fisher Theatre, Detroit | [67] | |
| 1966 | Sweet Charity | Yes | Yes | No | — | Palace Theatre, Broadway | [68] | |
| 1972 | Pippin | Yes | Yes | No | — | Imperial Theatre, Broadway | Also book writer | [69] |
| 1972 | Liza | Yes | Yes | No | — | Winter Garden Theatre, Broadway | [70] | |
| 1975 | Chicago | Yes | Yes | No | — | 46th Street Theatre, Broadway | Also book writer | [71] |
| 1978 | Dancin' | Yes | Yes | No | — | Ambassador Theatre, Broadway | [72] | |
| 1986 | Big Deal | Yes | Yes | No | — | Broadway Theatre, Broadway | [73] | |
| 1986 | Sweet Charity | Yes | Yes | No | — | Minskoff Theatre, Broadway | [74] | |
| Year | Title | Functioned as | Role | Notes | Ref. | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Director | Writer | Choreographer | Actor | |||||
| 1953 | The Affairs of Dobie Gillis | No | No | No | Yes | Charlie Trask | [75] | |
| 1953 | Kiss Me Kate | No | No | No | Yes | Hortensio | [75] | |
| 1953 | Give a Girl a Break | No | No | No | Yes | Bob Dowdy | [75] | |
| 1955 | My Sister Eileen | No | No | Yes | Yes | Frank Lippincott | [75] | |
| 1957 | The Pajama Game | No | No | Yes | No | — | [75] | |
| 1958 | Damn Yankees | No | No | Yes | Yes | Mambo Dancer | Uncredited | [75] |
| 1969 | Sweet Charity | Yes | No | Yes | No | — | Directorial Debut | [75] |
| 1972 | Cabaret | Yes | No | Yes | No | — | [75] | |
| 1974 | The Little Prince | No | No | Yes | Yes | The Snake | [75] | |
| 1974 | Lenny | Yes | No | No | Yes | The Interviewer | [75] | |
| 1977 | Thieves | No | No | No | Yes | Mr. Day | [75] | |
| 1979 | All That Jazz | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | — | [75] | |
| 1983 | Star 80 | Yes | Yes | No | No | — | [75] | |
| Year | Title | Functioned as | Role | Notes | Ref. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Director | Choreographer | Actor | |||||
| 1949-50 | 54th Street Revue | No | No | Yes | Dancer | [75] | |
| 1950 | The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show | No | No | Yes | Himself | Episode: "Gracie the Artist" | [75] |
| 1951 | The Colgate Comedy Hour | No | Yes | No | — | Episodes S1E22 & S1E37 | [75] |
| 1959 | The Dinah Shore Chevy Show | No | Yes | No | — | Episode S4E1 | [75] |
| Startime | Yes | Yes | No | — | Episode: "The Wonderful World of Entertainment" | [75] | |
| 1961 | The Seasons of Youth | No | Yes | No | — | Television special | [75] |
| 1970 | The Ed Sullivan Show | No | Yes | No | — | Episode S23E19 | [75] |
| 1972 | Liza with a Z | Yes | No | No | — | Television special | [75] |
| 1982 | Pippin: His Life and Times | No | Yes | No | — | Television film | [75] |
At the 1973Academy Awards, Fosse won theAcademy Award for Best Director forCabaret. That same year he wonTony Awards for directing and choreographingPippin andPrimetime Emmy Awards for producing, choreographing and directingLiza Minnelli's television specialLiza with a Z. Fosse was the only person to win all three major industry awards in the same year.
Fosse was inducted into theNational Museum of Dance inSaratoga Springs, New York, on April 27, 2007. The Los Angeles Dance Awards, founded in 1994, were called the "Fosse Awards", and are now called theAmerican Choreography Awards. The Bob Fosse–Gwen Verdon Fellowship was established by their daughter,Nicole Fosse, in 2003 at theAlvin Ailey American Dance Theater.
Reinking and Verdon kept Fosse's unique choreography alive after his death. Reinking played the role of Roxie Hart in the New York revival ofChicago, which opened in 1996. She choreographed the dances in Fosse style for that revival. In 1999, Verdon served as artistic consultant on a Broadway musical designed to showcase examples of classic Fosse choreography. Called simplyFosse, the three-act musical revue was conceived and choreographed by Chet Walker, directed and co-conceived by Richard Maltby, Jr., and co-directed, co-choreographed by co-conceived by Ann Reinking. Verdon and Fosse's daughter, Nicole, received a special thanks credit. The show won a Tony for best musical.[76]
Fosse/Verdon is an eight-part Americanminiseries starringSam Rockwell as Fosse andMichelle Williams as Verdon. The series, which tells the story of the couple's troubled personal and professional relationship, is based on the biographyFosse bySam Wasson.[77] It premiered in eight parts on April 9, 2019, onFX. At the71st Primetime Emmy Awards,Fosse/Verdon received seventeen nominations, includingOutstanding Limited Series and acting nominations for Rockwell, Williams, and Qualley. Williams won the Emmy forOutstanding Actress in a Limited Series.
Robert Louis Fosse was born in Chicago on June 23, 1927, the son of a vaudeville entertainer. He began performing on the vaudeville circuit as a child, and by the age of 13 he was a seasoned veteran of many burlesque shows. ...
Bob Fosse Personal Papers and Career Miscellany: Box 86E Front page of the Amundsen Log, 10/5/44 (Amundsen High School, Chicago), with banner: "Bob Fosse President"
(p. 34) At dance school, he was already a heartthrob ... and it was the same way at Amundsen High ... He seemed to go out with every girl in the class ...
