Dorothy Rodgers (''

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

'' Feiner; 1909 – 1992) was an American writer, inventor, businesswoman, and philanthropist. She was married to the Broadway composer

Richard Rodgers Richard Charles Rodgers (June 28, 1902 – December 30, 1979) was an American Musical composition, composer who worked primarily in musical theater. With 43 Broadway musicals and over 900 songs to his credit, Rodgers was one of the most ...

, of the famous duo

Rodgers and Hammerstein Rodgers and Hammerstein was a theater-writing team of composer Richard Rodgers (1902–1979) and lyricist-dramatist Oscar Hammerstein II (1895–1960), who together created a series of innovative and influential American musicals. Their popu ...

Life

Born in New York City to a Jewish family, Rodgers attended the

Horace Mann School , motto_translation = Great is the truth and it prevails , address = 231 West 246th Street , city = The Bronx , state = New York , zipcode = 10471 , count ...

and

Wellesley College Wellesley College is a private women's liberal arts college in Wellesley, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1870 by Henry and Pauline Durant as a female seminary, it is a member of the original Seven Sisters Colleges, an unofficial g ...

in the late 1920s, where she studied art and interior design. She married

in 1930. She started her own business, Repairs Inc. in 1935 before she invented the Jonny Mop in 1945. Rodgers was also the creator of the Basically Yours dress pattern and the Ideal Toy Company's Turn and Learn storybooks. She is the author of several books focusing on interior design and entertaining at home such as 1967's ''The House in My Head''. In 1970, Rodgers also co-wrote a self-help book with her daughter Mary Rodgers Guettel about mother-daughter relationships and housekeeping called ''A Word to the Wives''. This spawned a related radio show and a regular magazine column for ''

McCall's Magazine ''McCall's'' was a monthly American women's magazine, published by the McCall Corporation, that enjoyed great popularity through much of the 20th century, peaking at a readership of 8.4 million in the early 1960s. It was established as a small-for ...

'', "Of Two Minds." Rodgers was also known as an activist, writing letters against

antisemitism Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

.Koren, S. (2009). The "one-woman lobby on anything and everything:" discovering the other side of dorothy Rodgers1 2 3. ''Women in Judaism, 6''(1), 1-21. She likewise was a noted philanthropist who supported several Jewish cultural organizations. Dorothy Rodgers was portrayed by

Janet Leigh Jeanette Helen Morrison (July 6, 1927 – October 3, 2004), known professionally as Janet Leigh, was an American actress, singer, dancer, and author. Her career spanned over five decades. Raised in Stockton, California, by working-class parents, ...

in the

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by amazon (company), Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded o ...

film ''Words and Music'', a semi-fictionalized depiction of the partnership of Richard Rodgers and

Lorenz Hart Lorenz Milton Hart (May 2, 1895 – November 22, 1943) was an American lyricist and half of the Broadway songwriting team Rodgers and Hart. Some of his more famous lyrics include " Blue Moon", " The Lady Is a Tramp", "Manhattan", "Bewitched, Both ...

Death

Rodgers died in her Manhattan home at the age of 83 in August 1992. She was survived by her two daughters, Mary and Linda.

References

External links

The Lady Is A Champ
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rodgers, Dorothy 1909 births 1993 deaths American inventors 20th-century American non-fiction writers 20th-century American philanthropists