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Stephen Sondheim

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Stephen Sondheim: Biography

  • Birth Name: Stephen Joshua Sondheim
  • Birth Place: New York, NY
  • Date of Birth / Zodiac Sign: 03/22/1930, Aries
  • Profession: Composer; lyricist
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Stephen Sondheim Fast Facts:
  • Having been abandoned as a child by his father and emotionally scarred by his mother, he found a father figure and mentor in family friend Oscar Hammerstein II.
  • Made his mark on Broadway as lyricist for the groundbreaking 1957 musical West Side Story.
  • Broadway credit as a composer was delayed when Ethel Merman balked at his hiring two years later for the musical Gypsy; he did write the lyrics, while Jule Styne composed the music.
  • First music-and-lyrics credit came with A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum in 1962.
  • Wrote "Send in the Clowns" for 1973's A Little Night Music; it was recorded by Judy Collins in 1975 and became a pop hit.
  • A fondness for puzzles led to cowriting, with actor Anthony Perkins, an original screenplay for the intricate mystery The Last of Sheila (1973).
  • Won a Pulitzer Prize in 1985 for the musical Sunday in the Park With George, about pointillist painter George Seurat.
  • National Endowment for the Arts awarded him the National Medal of Freedom in 1996.
  • Lived alone until meeting songwriter Peter Jones when he was 61.
  • Openly talked about his homosexuality in the 1998 biography Stephen Sondheim, A Life by Meryle Secrest.
  • Stephen Sondheim Relationships:
  • Janet Fox Sondheim - Mother
  • Herbert Sondheim - Father
  • Peter Jones - Ex-significant Other
  • Lee Remick - Ex-significant Other
  • Stephen Sondheim Awards:
  • 1963 Tony: Musical - Winner
  • 2008 Tony: Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre - Winner
  • 1958 Tony: Musical - Nominee
  • 1960 Tony: Musical - Nominee
  • 1991 Golden Globe: Best Original Song - Motion Picture - Nominee
  • 1972 Tony: Score - Winner
  • 1982 Tony: Score - Nominee
  • 1988 Tony: Score (Musical) - Winner
  • 1965 Tony: Composer and Lyricist - Nominee
  • 1990 Oscar: Best Achievement in Music (Original Song) - Winner
  • 1994 Grammy: Best Musical Show Album - Winner
  • 1984 Grammy: Best Cast Show Album - Winner
  • 1988 Grammy: Best Musical Cast Show Album - Winner
  • 1979 Grammy: Best Cast Show Album - Winner
  • 1975 Grammy: Song of the Year - Winner
  • 1973 Grammy: Best Score From The Original Cast Show Album - Winner
  • 1970 Grammy: Best Score From The Original Cast Show Album - Winner
  • 1971 Tony: Lyrics (Musical) - Winner
  • 1971 Tony: Score - Winner
  • 1973 Tony: Score (Musical) - Winner
  • 1976 Tony: Score (Musical) - Nominee
  • 1979 Tony: Score - Winner
  • 1984 Tony: Score - Nominee
  • 1994 Tony: Original Musical Score - Winner
  • 2009 Grammy: Best Musical Show Album - Winner
  • College:
  • Williams College, Williamstown, MA (1950)
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