Bob Fosse

He married Mary Ann Niles in 1949, but divorced her two years later.

He then married Joan McCracken in 1952 and the marriage lasted for a span of seven years. His third wife was Gwen Verdon, who was also a popular actress and his muse.

He married Gwen Verdon, a popular actress and his muse, in 1960 and the couple had a daughter, Nicole Providence Fosse, who also went on to become an actress and a dancer. He separated from her in the mid-70s, but the couple was legally married till his death. Just before his death, he was living with his girlfriend for four years

Robert Louis ‘Bob’ Fosse was born to Sara Alice Fosse and Cyril K. Fosse in Chicago, Illinois. He was the second youngest of the six children born to the couple.

In his initial years as a dancer, he teamed up with Charles Grass under the association, ‘The Riff Brothers’. The duo toured around America and made money with their acts. He was then placed in the variety show, ‘Tough Situation’.

In 1946, he made his vaudeville debut with his wife in ‘Call Me Mister’, which earned him the attention of biggies like Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin. He then became a regular performer with his wife in the ‘Youth Hit Parade’ in the 1950s.

He signed a contract with MGM in 1953 and he appeared in ‘Give A Girl A Break’, ‘The Affairs of Dobie Gills’ and ‘Kiss Me Kate’ all of which appeared the same year. His performances earned him the attention of numerous Broadway producers.

He choreographed his first musical, ‘The Pajama Game’ in 1954 followed by ‘Damn Yankees’ the next year.

In 1957, he choreographed, ‘New Girl in Town’, followed by the film adaptation of ‘Pajama Game’, starring Doris Day. Three years later, he was the director and choreographer for a musical called, ‘Readhead’ for the first time.

In 1961, he also choreographed the musical hit, ‘How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying’ and was the director/choreographer for ‘The Conquering Hero’.

In 1966, he choreographed and directed a musical called ‘Sweet Charity’, which also starred his wife and muse, Gwen Verdon. Three years later, he directed his first feature film adaptation of ‘Sweet Charity’.

In 1972, he directed one of his most iconic works, ‘Cabaret’, a musical film. The movie is regarded as his magnum opus because it still holds the record for most number of ‘Academy Award’ wins in a sole year without winning the uppermost honor of the ‘Best Picture’. Bob Fosse won an Academy Award for direction for his movie and the film went on to collect a massive $42,765,000 at the box-office.

‘Pippin’, which premiered on Broadway for the first time in 1972, is also considered one of his masterpieces. The piece is considered the ‘31st longest-running Broadway show’ and it went on to earn Fosse an important ‘Tony Award’ for the same.