Gwen Verdon, Acting - KorPlix:Korean Person Archives

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Gwen Verdon
Acting

Gwen Verdon
Known For
Acting
Birthday
1925-01-13,Culver City, Los Angeles, California, USA
Gender
Female
Biography
Gwyneth Evelyn "Gwen" Verdon was an American actress and dancer. She won four Tony Awards for her musical comedy performances, and served as an uncredited choreographer's assistant and specialty dance coach for theater and film. With flaming red hair and a quaver in her voice, Verdon was a critically acclaimed performer on Broadway from the 1950s-70s. Having originated many roles in musicals she is also strongly identified with her second husband, director–choreographer Bob Fosse, remembered as the dancer–collaborator–muse for whom he choreographed much of his work and as the guardian of his legacy after his death. By the time she was six, she was already dancing on stage. She went on to study multiple dance forms, ranging from tap, jazz, ballroom and flamenco to Balinese. In 1942, Verdon’s parents asked her to marry family friend and tabloid reporter James Henaghan after he got her pregnant at 17, and she quit her dancing career to raise their child. After her divorce, she entrusted her son Jimmy to the care of her parents. Early on, Verdon found a job as assistant to choreographer Jack Cole. During her five-year employment with Cole, she took small roles in movie musicals as a "specialty dancer" She also taught dance to stars such as Jane Russell, Fernando Lamas, and Lana Turner. Verdon started out on Broadway as a "gypsy," going from one chorus line to another. Her breakthrough role finally came as second female lead in Cole Porter's musical Can-Can. Verdon's biggest success was George Abbott's Damn Yankees. Verdon won another Tony and went to Hollywood to repeat her role in the 1958 movie version Damn Yankees. Verdon won another Tony for her performance in the musical, New Girl in Town, and won her fourth Tony for Redhead. Verdon and Fosse continued to collaborate on projects such as musicals Chicago and Dancin', as well as All That Jazz. After originating the role of Roxie opposite Chita Rivera's Velma Kelly in Chicago, Verdon focused on film acting, playing character roles in movies such as The Cotton Club, Cocoon and its sequel. She continued to teach dance and musical theater and to act. She received three Emmy Award nominations for appearances on Magnum, P.I., Dream On, and Homicide: Life on the Street. Verdon appeared in Alice and Marvin's Room). In 1999, Verdon served as artistic consultant on a Broadway musical designed to showcase examples of classic Fosse choreography, called Fosse. which won a Tony Award for best musical. Verdon appeared in the movie Walking Across Egypt, as well as Bruno. Verdon received a total of four Tonys, for best featured actress for Can-Can and best leading actress for Damn Yankees, New Girl in Town, and Redhead. She also won a Grammy Award for the cast recording of Redhead. Verdon was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame in 1981, and in 1998, she was awarded the National Medal of Arts.

Filmography

6.6

Cocoon
1985-06-21

Cocoon: The Return

6.5

Cocoon: The Return
1988-09-13

6.434

Alice
1990-12-25

6.7

Marvin's Room
1996-12-18

6.5

Damn Yankees
1958-09-26

5.4

Nadine
1987-08-07

0

Legs
1983-05-02

Broadway's Lost Treasures III: The Best of The Tony Awards

7.2

Broadway's Lost Treasures III: The Best of The Tony Awards
2005-08-07

Broadway: The Golden Age, by the Legends Who Were There

7

Broadway: The Golden Age, by the Legends Who Were There
2003-04-03

Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All

5.4

Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All
1994-05-01

Sanford Meisner: The American Theatre's Best Kept Secret

0

Sanford Meisner: The American Theatre's Best Kept Secret
1990-08-27

The Cotton Club

6.5

The Cotton Club
1984-12-14

Night of 100 Stars II

8

Night of 100 Stars II
1985-03-10

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band

4.4

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
1978-07-24

5.9

On the Riviera
1951-04-20

David and Bathsheba

5.8

David and Bathsheba
1951-08-10

American Dance Machine Presents a Celebration of Broadway Dance

0

American Dance Machine Presents a Celebration of Broadway Dance
1983-06-23

Meet Me After the Show

5

Meet Me After the Show
1951-08-15

6.8

Bruno
2000-04-16

The King Steps Out

5.7

The King Steps Out
1936-05-27

That's Entertainment, Part II

6.8

That's Entertainment, Part II
1976-05-16

Merely Marvelous: The Dancing Genius of Gwen Verdon

7.3

Merely Marvelous: The Dancing Genius of Gwen Verdon
2019-08-03

7.4

Liza with a Z
1972-09-10

Walking Across Egypt

4.9

Walking Across Egypt
1999-01-01

Broadway's Lost Treasures

5.6

Broadway's Lost Treasures
2003-08-10

Bob Fosse: Steam Heat

0

Bob Fosse: Steam Heat
1990-02-23

Chita Rivera: A Lot Of Livin' To Do

0

Chita Rivera: A Lot Of Livin' To Do
2015-11-06

The Deadly Visitor

6

The Deadly Visitor
1973-07-03

The Music of Kander & Ebb: Razzle Dazzle

0

The Music of Kander & Ebb: Razzle Dazzle
1997-12-03

That's Dancing!

7

That's Dancing!
1985-01-18

Hoosier Holiday

0

Hoosier Holiday
1943-09-13

Blonde from Brooklyn

5

Blonde from Brooklyn
1945-06-21

6

Dreamboat
1952-07-26

The I Don't Care Girl

6.5

The I Don't Care Girl
1953-01-14

Gentlemen Marry Brunettes

5.2

Gentlemen Marry Brunettes
1955-10-29

The Farmer Takes a Wife

3.3

The Farmer Takes a Wife
1953-06-12

The Merry Widow

5.8

The Merry Widow
1952-09-05

Best Friends for Life

0

Best Friends for Life
1998-01-18

7.286

Magnum, P.I.
1980-12-11

7.9

M*A*S*H
1972-09-17

The Colgate Comedy Hour

7

The Colgate Comedy Hour
1950-09-10

6.7

Fame
1982-01-07

Walker, Texas Ranger

6.974

Walker, Texas Ranger
1993-04-21

6.7

Hotel
1982-08-21

The Merv Griffin Show

5.3

The Merv Griffin Show
1962-10-01

7.1

The Equalizer
1985-09-18

The Ed Sullivan Show

6.5

The Ed Sullivan Show
1948-06-20

Homicide: Life on the Street

8

Homicide: Life on the Street
1993-01-31

The Don Knotts Show

0

The Don Knotts Show
1970-09-15

The Dinah Shore Chevy Show

4

The Dinah Shore Chevy Show
1956-10-05

The Mike Douglas Show

4.8

The Mike Douglas Show
1961-12-11

The Mike Douglas Show

4.8

The Mike Douglas Show
1961-12-11

What's My Line?

6.6

What's My Line?
1950-02-02

6

In Cold Blood
1996-11-24

5.8

Dear John
1988-10-06

The Carol Burnett Show

7.5

The Carol Burnett Show
1967-09-11

5

Tony Awards
1956-04-01

5

Tony Awards
1956-04-01

6.9

Dream On
1990-07-08

The Dick Cavett Show

6.6

The Dick Cavett Show
1968-06-06

Touched by an Angel

7.233

Touched by an Angel
1994-09-21

The Danny Kaye Show

6.3

The Danny Kaye Show
1963-09-25

Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All

5

Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All
1994-05-01

All is Forgiven

5

All is Forgiven
1986-03-20