Richard Charles Rodgers (June 28, 1902 – December 30, 1979) was an American
composer who worked primarily in musical theater. With 43 Broadway musicals and over 900 songs to his credit, Rodgers was one of the most well-known American composers of the 20th century, and his compositions had a significant influence on popular music.
Rodgers is known for his songwriting partnerships, first with lyricist
Lorenz Hart and then with
Oscar Hammerstein II. With Hart he wrote musicals throughout the 1920s and 1930s, including ''
Pal Joey'', ''
A Connecticut Yankee'', ''
On Your Toes'' and ''
Babes in Arms.'' With Hammerstein he wrote musicals through the 1940s and 1950s, such as ''
Oklahoma!'', ''
Flower Drum Song'', ''
Carousel'', ''
South Pacific
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
'', ''
The King and I
''The King and I'' is the fifth musical by the team of Rodgers and Hammerstein. It is based on Margaret Landon's novel '' Anna and the King of Siam'' (1944), which is in turn derived from the memoirs of Anna Leonowens, governess to the chil ...
'', and ''
The Sound of Music''. His collaborations with Hammerstein, in particular, are celebrated for bringing the Broadway musical to a new maturity by telling stories that were focused on characters and drama rather than the earlier light-hearted entertainment of the genre.
Rodgers was the first person to win all four of the top American entertainment awards in theater, film, recording, and televisiona
Tony, an
Oscar, a
Grammy, and an
Emmynow known collectively as an
EGOT. In addition, he was awarded a
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made ...
, making him one of only two people to receive all five awards (
Marvin Hamlisch is the other). In 1978, Rodgers was in the inaugural group of
Kennedy Center Honorees for lifetime achievement in the arts.
Biography
Early life and education
Born into a
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
family in Queens, New York, Rodgers was the son of Mamie (Levy) and Dr William Abrahams Rodgers, a prominent physician who had changed the family name from Rogazinsky. Rodgers began playing the piano at the age of six. He attended P.S. 166, Townsend Harris Hall and
DeWitt Clinton High School. Rodgers spent his early teenage summers in Camp Wigwam (
Waterford, Maine
Waterford is a town in Oxford County, Maine, United States. The population was 1,570 at the 2020 census. It is a recreation area noted for historic architecture and scenic beauty.
History
The township was granted on February 24, 1774 by the ...
) where he composed some of his first songs.
Rodgers,
Lorenz Hart, and later collaborator
Oscar Hammerstein II all attended
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
. At Columbia, Rodgers joined the
Pi Lambda Phi fraternity. In 1921, Rodgers shifted his studies to the Institute of Musical Art (now the
Juilliard School
The Juilliard School ( ) is a Private university, private performing arts music school, conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely ...
). Rodgers was influenced by composers such as
Victor Herbert and
Jerome Kern
Jerome David Kern (January 27, 1885 – November 11, 1945) was an American composer of musical theatre and popular music. One of the most important American theatre composers of the early 20th century, he wrote more than 700 songs, used in ove ...
, as well as by the
operettas his parents took him to see on
Broadway when he was a child.
Career
Rodgers and Hart
In 1919, Richard met
Lorenz Hart, thanks to Phillip Levitt, a friend of Richard's older brother.
Rodgers and Hart struggled for years in the field of musical comedy, writing several amateur shows. They made their professional debut with the song "Any Old Place With You", featured in the 1919 Broadway musical comedy ''A Lonely Romeo''. Their first professional production was the 1920 ''
Poor Little Ritz Girl'', which also had music by
Sigmund Romberg. Their next professional show, ''The Melody Man'', did not premiere until 1924.
When he was just out of college Rodgers worked as musical director for
Lew Fields
Lew Fields (born Moses Schoenfeld, January 1867 – July 20, 1941) was an American actor, comedian, vaudeville star, theatre manager, and producer. He was part of a comedy duo with Joe Weber. He also produced shows on his own and starred in ...
. Among the stars he accompanied were
Nora Bayes
Nora Bayes (born Rachel Eleonora "Dora" Goldberg; October 3, 1880March 19, 1928) was an American singer and vaudeville performer who was popular internationally between the 1900s and 1920s. She is credited with co-writing the song " Shine On, Ha ...
and
Fred Allen
John Florence Sullivan (May 31, 1894 – March 17, 1956), known professionally as Fred Allen, was an American comedian. His absurdist, topically pointed radio program ''The Fred Allen Show'' (1932–1949) made him one of the most popular and for ...
. Rodgers was considering quitting show business altogether to sell children's underwear, when he and Hart finally broke through in 1925. They wrote the songs for a benefit show presented by the prestigious
Theatre Guild
The Theatre Guild is a theatrical society founded in New York City in 1918 by Lawrence Langner, Philip Moeller, Helen Westley and Theresa Helburn. Langner's wife, Armina Marshall, then served as a co-director. It evolved out of the work of th ...
, called ''
The Garrick Gaieties'', and the critics found the show fresh and delightful. Although it was meant to run only one day, the Guild knew they had a success and allowed it to re-open later. The show's biggest hit—the song that Rodgers believed "made" Rodgers and Hart—was "
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
". The two were now a Broadway songwriting force.
Throughout the rest of the decade, the duo wrote several hit shows for both Broadway and London, including ''
Dearest Enemy
''Dearest Enemy'' is a musical with a book by Herbert Fields, lyrics by Lorenz Hart, and music by Richard Rodgers. This was the first of eight book musicals written by the songwriting team of Rodgers and Hart and writer Herbert Fields, and the ...
'' (1925), ''
The Girl Friend
''The Girl Friend'' is a musical comedy with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Lorenz Hart and book by Herbert Fields. This was the longest running show for the trio to that date.Secrest, Meryle. ''Somewhere for me:a biography of Richard Rodgers ...
'' (1926), ''
Peggy-Ann
''Peggy-Ann'' is a musical comedy with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Lorenz Hart and book by Herbert Fields, based on the 1910 musical '' Tillie’s Nightmare'' by Edgar Smith.
Production
The musical opened on Broadway at the Vanderbilt The ...
'' (1926), ''
A Connecticut Yankee'' (1927), and ''
Present Arms'' (1928). Their 1920s shows produced standards such as "
Here in My Arms", "
Mountain Greenery", "
Blue Room", "
My Heart Stood Still
"My Heart Stood Still" is a 1927 popular song composed by Richard Rodgers, with lyrics by Lorenz Hart. It was written for the Charles Cochran revue ''One Dam' Thing after Another'', which opened at the London Pavilion on May 19, 1927. The show ...
" and "
You Took Advantage of Me".
With the
Depression in full swing during the first half of the 1930s, the team sought greener pastures in Hollywood. The hardworking Rodgers later regretted these relatively fallow years, but he and Hart did write some classic songs and film scores while out west, including ''
Love Me Tonight'' (1932) (directed by
Rouben Mamoulian
Rouben Zachary Mamoulian ( ; hy, Ռուբէն Մամուլեան; October 8, 1897 – December 4, 1987) was an American film and theatre director.
Early life
Mamoulian was born in Tiflis, Russian Empire, to a family of Armenian descent. ...
, who would later direct Rodgers's ''
Oklahoma!'' on Broadway), which introduced three standards: "
Lover
Lover or lovers may refer to a person having a sexual or romantic relationship with someone outside marriage. In this context see:
* Sexual partner
* Mistress (lover)
* Extramarital sex
* Premarital sex
Lover or Lovers may also refer to:
G ...
", "
Mimi", and "
Isn't It Romantic?". Rodgers also wrote a melody for which Hart wrote three consecutive lyrics which were either cut, not recorded or not a hit. The fourth lyric resulted in one of their most famous songs, "
Blue Moon
A blue moon is an additional full moon that appears in a subdivision of a year: the third of four full moons in a season.
The phrase in modern usage has nothing to do with the actual color of the Moon, although a visually blue Moon (the Moon ...
". Other film work includes the scores to ''
The Phantom President'' (1932), starring
George M. Cohan, ''
Hallelujah, I’m a Bum'' (1933), starring
Al Jolson, and, in a quick return after having left Hollywood, ''Mississippi'' (1935), starring
Bing Crosby
Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, musician and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. He was a ...
and
W. C. Fields
William Claude Dukenfield (January 29, 1880 – December 25, 1946), better known as W. C. Fields, was an American comedian, actor, juggler, and writer. Fields's comic persona was a misanthropic and hard-drinking egotist who remained a sympathet ...
.
In 1935, they returned to Broadway and wrote an almost unbroken string of hit shows that ended shortly before Hart's death in 1943. Among the most notable are ''
Jumbo'' (1935), ''
On Your Toes'' (1936, which included the ballet "
Slaughter on Tenth Avenue", choreographed by George Balanchine), ''
Babes in Arms'' (1937), ''
I Married an Angel'' (1938), ''
The Boys from Syracuse'' (1938), ''
Pal Joey'' (1940), and their last original work, ''
By Jupiter'' (1942). Rodgers also contributed to the book on several of these shows.
Many of the songs from these shows are still sung and remembered, including "
The Most Beautiful Girl in the World", "
My Romance", "
Little Girl Blue", "
I'll Tell the Man in the Street
"I'll Tell the Man in the Street" is a song first introduced by Dennis King in the 1938 stage musical ''I Married an Angel''.
The song was written by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart.
Other Recordings Nelson Eddy
Nelson Eddy performed the song w ...
", "
There's a Small Hotel", "
Where or When
"Where or When" is a show tune from the 1937 Rodgers and Hart musical ''Babes in Arms''. It was first performed by Ray Heatherton and Mitzi Green. That same year, Hal Kemp recorded a popular version. The song also appeared in the film version o ...
", "
My Funny Valentine", "
The Lady Is a Tramp", "
Falling in Love with Love", "
Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered", and "
Wait till You See Her
"Wait till You See Her" (or, sung by a female, "Wait till You See Him") is a popular song. The music was written by Richard Rodgers, the lyrics by Lorenz Hart.
The song was published in 1942 and introduced in the musical play, ''By Jupiter'' (1 ...
".
In 1939, Rodgers wrote the ballet ''Ghost Town'' for the
Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo
The company Ballets Russes de Monte-Carlo (with a plural name) was formed in 1932 after the death of Sergei Diaghilev and the demise of Ballets Russes. Its director was Wassily de Basil (usually referred to as Colonel W. de Basil), and its a ...
, with choreography by
Marc Platoff.
Rodgers and Hammerstein
Rodgers' partnership with Hart began having problems because of the lyricist's unreliability and declining health. Rodgers began working with
Oscar Hammerstein II, with whom he had previously written songs (before ever working with Lorenz Hart). Their first musical, the groundbreaking hit ''
Oklahoma!'' (1943), is a notable example of a "
book musical", a musical play in which the songs and dances are fully integrated into the plot. What was once a collection of songs, dances and comic turns held together by a tenuous plot became a fully integrated narrative. Even though ''
Show Boat'' is considered to be the earliest example of a book musical, ''Oklahoma!'' epitomized the innovations for which ''Show Boat'' had laid the groundwork and is considered the first production in American history to be intentionally marketed as a fully integrated musical.
The team went on to create four more hits that are among the most popular in musical history. Each was made into a successful film: ''
Carousel'' (1945), ''
South Pacific
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
'' (1949, winner of the 1950
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made ...
for Drama), ''
The King and I
''The King and I'' is the fifth musical by the team of Rodgers and Hammerstein. It is based on Margaret Landon's novel '' Anna and the King of Siam'' (1944), which is in turn derived from the memoirs of Anna Leonowens, governess to the chil ...
'' (1951), and ''
The Sound of Music'' (1959). Other shows include the minor hit ''
Flower Drum Song'' (1958), as well as relative failures ''
Allegro
Allegro may refer to:
Common meanings
* Allegro (music), a tempo marking indicate to play fast, quickly and bright
* Allegro (ballet), brisk and lively movement
Artistic works
* L'Allegro (1645), a poem by John Milton
* ''Allegro'' (Satie), an ...
'' (1947), ''
Me and Juliet
''Me and Juliet'' is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, and lyrics and book by Oscar Hammerstein II. The sixth stage collaboration by Rodgers & Hammerstein, it tells a story of romance backstage at a long-running musical: assistant stage ma ...
'' (1953), and ''
Pipe Dream'' (1955). They also wrote the score to the film ''
State Fair'' (1945) (which was remade in 1962 with
Pat Boone
Patrick Charles Eugene Boone (born June 1, 1934) is an American singer and actor. He was a successful pop singer in the United States during the 1950s and early 1960s. He sold more than 45 million records, had 38 Top 40 hits, and appeared in mo ...
) and a special TV musical of ''
Cinderella'' (1957).
Their collaboration produced many well-known songs, including "
Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'
"Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'" is the opening song from the musical ''Oklahoma!'', which premiered on Broadway in 1943. It was written by composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist/librettist Oscar Hammerstein II. The leading male character in ''Oklah ...
", "
People Will Say We're in Love", "
Oklahoma" (which also became the state song of Oklahoma), "It's A Grand Night For Singing", "
If I Loved You", "
You'll Never Walk Alone", "
It Might as Well Be Spring", "
Some Enchanted Evening", "
Younger Than Springtime", "
Bali Hai", "
Getting to Know You", "
My Favorite Things", "
The Sound of Music", "
Sixteen Going on Seventeen
"Sixteen Going on Seventeen" is a show tune from the 1959 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical ''The Sound of Music''.
Background
The lyrics of the song state that Liesl is a young girl at the beginning of her womanhood, and that she can depend on R ...
", "
Climb Ev'ry Mountain", "
Do-Re-Mi", and "
Edelweiss", Hammerstein's last song.
Much of Rodgers' work with both Hart and Hammerstein was orchestrated by
Robert Russell Bennett. Rodgers composed twelve themes, which Bennett used in preparing the orchestra score for the 26-episode
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
television documentary ''
Victory at Sea
''Victory at Sea'' is a documentary television series about warfare in general during World War II, and naval warfare in particular, as well as the use of industry in warfare. It was originally broadcast by NBC in the United States in 1952–19 ...
'' (1952–53). This
NBC production pioneered the "compilation documentary"—programming based on pre-existing footage—and was eventually broadcast in dozens of countries. The melody of the popular song "
No Other Love" was later taken from the ''Victory at Sea'' theme entitled "Beneath the Southern Cross". Rodgers won an
Emmy for the music for the ABC documentary ''
Winston Churchill: The Valiant Years'', scored by
Eddie Sauter,
Hershy Kay, and
Robert Emmett Dolan. Rodgers composed the theme music, "
March of the Clowns", for the 1963–64 television series ''
The Greatest Show on Earth'', which ran for 30 episodes. He also contributed the main title theme for the 1963–64 historical anthology television series
''The Great Adventure''.
In 1950,
Rodgers and Hammerstein received
The Hundred Year Association of New York's Gold Medal Award "in recognition of outstanding contributions to the City of New York." Rodgers, Hammerstein, and
Joshua Logan
Joshua Lockwood Logan III (October 5, 1908 – July 12, 1988) was an American director, writer, and actor. He shared a Pulitzer Prize for co-writing the musical ''South Pacific'' and was involved in writing other musicals.
Early years
Logan w ...
won the
Pulitzer Prize for Drama for ''South Pacific''. Rodgers and Hammerstein had won a
special Pulitzer Prize in 1944 for ''Oklahoma!''.
In 1954, Rodgers conducted the
New York Philharmonic Orchestra in excerpts from ''Victory at Sea'', ''
Slaughter on Tenth Avenue'' and the ''
Carousel Waltz'' for a special LP released by
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony. It was founded on January 15, 1889, evolving from the A ...
.
Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals earned a total of 37
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual c ...
s, 15
Academy Awards
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
, two
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made ...
s, two
Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...
s, and two
Emmy Award
The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...
s.
After Hammerstein
After Hammerstein's death in 1960, Rodgers wrote both words and music for his first new Broadway project ''
No Strings'' (1962, which earned two Tony Awards). The show was a minor hit and featured the song, "
The Sweetest Sounds".
Rodgers also wrote both the words and music for two new songs used in the film version of
''The Sound of Music''. (Other songs in that film were from Rodgers and Hammerstein.)
Rodgers went on to work with lyricists:
Stephen Sondheim
Stephen Joshua Sondheim (; March 22, 1930November 26, 2021) was an American composer and lyricist. One of the most important figures in twentieth-century musical theater, Sondheim is credited for having "reinvented the American musical" with sho ...
(''
Do I Hear a Waltz?'') who was a protégé of Hammerstein,
Martin Charnin (''
Two by Two,'' ''
I Remember Mama'') and
Sheldon Harnick
Sheldon Mayer Harnick (born April 30, 1924) is an American lyricist and songwriter best known for his collaborations with composer Jerry Bock on musicals such as ''Fiorello!'' and '' Fiddler on the Roof''.
Early life
Sheldon Mayer Harnick was ...
(''
Rex'').
At its 1978 commencement ceremonies,
Barnard College
Barnard College of Columbia University is a private women's liberal arts college in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded in 1889 by a group of women led by young student activist Annie Nathan Meyer, who petitioned Columbia ...
awarded Rodgers its highest honor, the
Barnard Medal of Distinction.
Rodgers was an honoree at the first
Kennedy Center Honors in 1978.
At the 1979 Tony Awards ceremony—six months before his death—Rodgers was presented the Lawrence Langner Memorial Award for Distinguished Lifetime Achievement in the American Theatre.
Death and legacy
Rodgers died in 1979, aged 77, after surviving cancer of the jaw, a heart attack, and a
laryngectomy. He was cremated, and his ashes were scattered at sea.
In 1990, the 46th Street Theatre was renamed the
Richard Rodgers Theatre in his memory. In 1999, Rodgers and Hart were each commemorated on United States postage stamps. In 2002, the centennial year of Rodgers' birth was celebrated worldwide with books, retrospectives, performances, new recordings of his music, and a Broadway revival of ''Oklahoma!''. The
BBC Proms that year devoted an entire evening to Rodgers' music, including a concert performance of ''Oklahoma!'' The
Boston Pops Orchestra released a new CD that year in tribute to Rodgers, entitled ''My Favorite Things: A Richard Rodgers Celebration''.
Alec Wilder
Alexander Lafayette Chew Wilder (February 16, 1907 – December 24, 1980) was an American composer.
Biography
Wilder was born in Rochester, New York, United States, to a prominent family; the Wilder Building downtown (at the "Four Corners") ...
wrote the following about Rodgers:
Rodgers is a member of the
American Theater Hall of Fame
The American Theater Hall of Fame in New York City was founded in 1972. Earl Blackwell was the first head of the organization's Executive Committee. In an announcement in 1972, he said that the new ''Theater Hall of Fame'' would be located in the ...
.
Along with the Academy of Arts and Letters, Rodgers also started and endowed an award for non-established musical theater composers to produce new productions either by way of full productions or staged readings. It is the only award for which the Academy of Arts and Letters accepts applications and is presented every year. Below are the previous winners of the award:
Relationship with performers
Rosemary Clooney recorded a version of "
Falling in Love with Love" by Rodgers, using a swing style. After the recording session Richard Rodgers told her pointedly that it should be sung as a waltz. The 1961
doo-wop
Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a genre of rhythm and blues music that originated in African-American communities during the 1940s, mainly in the large cities of the United States, including New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chica ...
arrangement of the Rodgers and Hart song "Blue Moon" by
The Marcels so incensed Rodgers that he took out full-page newspaper ads urging people not to buy it. His efforts were unsuccessful as it reached #1 on the charts. After
Doris Day
Doris Day (born Doris Mary Kappelhoff; April 3, 1922 – May 13, 2019) was an American actress, singer, and activist. She began her career as a big band singer in 1939, achieving commercial success in 1945 with two No. 1 recordings, " Sent ...
recorded "
I Have Dreamed" in 1961, he wrote to her and her arranger, Jim Harbert, that theirs was the most beautiful rendition of his song he had ever heard.
After
Peggy Lee recorded her version of "
Lover
Lover or lovers may refer to a person having a sexual or romantic relationship with someone outside marriage. In this context see:
* Sexual partner
* Mistress (lover)
* Extramarital sex
* Premarital sex
Lover or Lovers may also refer to:
G ...
", a Rodgers song, with a dramatically different arrangement from that originally conceived by him, Rodgers said, "I don't know why Peggy picked on me, she could have fucked up
Silent Night".
Mary Martin
Mary Virginia Martin (December 1, 1913 – November 3, 1990) was an American actress and singer. A muse of Rodgers and Hammerstein, she originated many leading roles on stage over her career, including Nellie Forbush in ''South Pacific'' (194 ...
said that Richard Rodgers composed songs for her for ''South Pacific'', knowing she had a small vocal range, and the songs generally made her look her best. She also said that Rodgers and Hammerstein listened to all her suggestions and she worked extremely well with them. Both Rodgers and Hammerstein wanted Doris Day for the lead in the film version of ''South Pacific'' and she reportedly wanted the part. They discussed it with her, but after her manager/husband
Martin Melcher would not budge on his demand for a high salary for her, the role went to
Mitzi Gaynor.
Advocacy for writers' rights
In 1943, Richard Rodgers became the ninth president of th
Dramatists Guild of America
Personal life
In 1930, Rodgers married
Dorothy Belle Feiner (1909–92). Their daughter,
Mary (1931–2014), was the composer of ''
Once Upon a Mattress'' and an author of children's books. The Rodgers' later lost a daughter at birth. Another daughter, Linda (1935–2015), also had a brief career as a
songwriter
A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music ...
. Mary's son and Richard Rodgers's grandson,
Adam Guettel (b. 1964), also a musical theater composer, won Tony Awards for Best Score and Best Orchestrations for ''
The Light in the Piazza'' in 2005.
Peter Melnick (b. 1958), Linda Rodgers's son, is the composer of ''Adrift In Macao,'' which debuted at the Philadelphia Theatre Company in 2005 and was produced
Off-Broadway
An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer th ...
in 2007.
Rodgers was an
atheist
Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...
.
[Rodgers' biographer William G Hyland states: "That Richard Rodgers would recall, at the very beginning of his memoirs, his great-grandmother's death and its religious significance for his family suggests his need to justify his own religious alienation. Richard became an atheist, and as a parent, he resisted religious instruction for his children. According to his wife, Dorothy, he felt that religion was based on "fear" and contributed to "feelings of guilt." " ''Richard Rodgers'', Yale University Press 1998, ]
Chapter 1
at ''The New York Times'' Books (accessed April 30, 2008). He was prone to depression and alcohol abuse and was at one time hospitalized.
Awards and nominations
Rodgers is one of the few entertainers to have won the
EGOT, the
Emmy,
Grammy,
Oscar, and
Tony.
Shows with music by Rodgers
Lyrics by Lorenz Hart
Lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II
Other lyricists and solo works
References
Further reading
*
External links
*
*
*
City Journal article on RodgersThe Richard Rodgers Collection at the Library of CongressRichard Rodgers papers, 1914–1989 held by the Billy Rose Theatre Division,
New York Public Library for the Performing ArtsMusicals by Rodgers and Hammerstein*
*
Richard Rodgers recordingsat the
Discography of American Historical Recordings.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rodgers, Richard
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