Gwen Verdon
Dancer / Actor
Gwen Verdon was considered Broadway's best dancer in the 1950s and '60s. Known especially for her impudent verve and flaming red hair, Verdon won four Tony awards during the 1950s and was nominated twice more after that. Among her best-known roles were the seductive Lola in Damn Yankees (1955) and the title role in Sweet Charity (1966). Verdon had a lengthy, stormy marriage to director and choreographer Bob Fosse; their relationship was depicted in part in his movie All That Jazz (1979). Her last major Broadway role was that of Roxie Hart in Fosse's 1975 musical Chicago. In later years Verdon had roles in various movies and made guest appearances on many TV series.Extra credit: Chicago was revived on Broadway the 1990s, and Roxie was then played by Renee Zellweger in the Oscar-winning 2002 film version.
Verdon appears with Ann Reinking in our loop The Fosse Connection.
Four Good Links
NY Times Obituary
From October of 2000; a fine and thorough rundown of her Broadway career
The Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon Collection
A listing of a collection in the Library of Congress, with brief biographical information
Gwen Verdon
Interesting personal anecdote about Verdon's affection for Fosse
Gwen Verdon Filmography
The IMDB covers Verdon's screen appearances from Damn Yankees to Magnum, P.I.
Vital Stats
Birth
Birthplace
Death
18 October 2000
(natural causes, age 75)
Best Known As
The original Lola in Broadway's Damn Yankees
