Portrait of Bob Fosse

Birthday profile

Bob Fosse

Bob Fosse, American actor, dancer, choreographer, and director (died 1987)

Born
June 23, 1927
Died
September 23, 1987
Zodiac sign
Cancer
Birth year
1927

About Bob Fosse

Robert Louis Fosse (; June 23, 1927 – September 23, 1987) was an American choreographer, dancer, actor, filmmaker, and stage director. He is known for his work on stage and screen, and was arguably the most influential figure in the field of jazz dance in the twentieth century. He received numerous accolades including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, three Primetime Emmy Awards, nine Tony Awards, and the Palme d'Or. His career began as an actor in the musical productions Call Me Mister (1947), Billion Dollar Baby (1951), and Pal Joey (1952). He transitioned into directing and choreographing musical works, winning Tony Awards for choreographing The Pajama Game (1954), Damn Yankees (1955), Redhead (1959), Little Me (1963), Sweet Charity (1966), Pippin (1972), Dancin' (1978), and Big Deal (1986), and for directing Pippin. He worked on Bells Are Ringing (1956), New Girl in Town (1958), How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (1961), and Chicago (1975). In film, he played Hortensio in the MGM musical Kiss Me Kate (1953) and his directorial debut was in the musical Sweet Charity (1969). He won the Academy Award for Best Director for the musical drama Cabaret (1972). He was Oscar-nominated for directing the dramas Lenny (1974) and All That Jazz (1979), the latter of which won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival. He directed the concert film Liza with a Z (1972), which earned him the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Variety Special, and his final film is Star 80 (1983). Fosse forged an uncompromising modern style, characterized by finger-snapping, tilted bowler hats, fishnet stockings, splayed gloved fingers, turned-in knees and toes, shoulder rolls, and jazz hands. His third wife was the actor–dancer Gwen Verdon, with whom he collaborated on several theater and film projects. In 1943 at the age of 15, Fosse would come to choreograph his first dance number and earn his first full credit as a choreographer in a film, Hold Evry'thing!

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Bob Fosse timeline

  1. In 1943 at the age of 15, Fosse would come to choreograph his first dance number and earn his first full credit as a choreographer in a film, Hold Evry'thing!
  2. He won the Academy Award for Best Director for the musical drama Cabaret (1972).
  3. He was Oscar-nominated for directing the dramas Lenny (1974) and All That Jazz (1979), the latter of which won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival.

The world when Bob Fosse was born

Bob Fosse was born in 1927. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1927

  • #1 song"My Blue Heaven" – Gene Austin
  • Top movieThe Jazz Singer (first talking picture)
  • Best-selling bookElmer Gantry – Sinclair Lewis

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentBabe Ruth hits 60 home runs
  • Top headlineLindbergh completes first solo transatlantic flight
  • Technology milestoneThe Jazz Singer — first feature-length talking film
  • Defining fadDance marathons peak
  • Notable inventionPEZ candy dispensers
  • World population2.04 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderCalvin Coolidge
  • Sports championNew York Yankees (World Series)
  • U.S. population119.0M

1927 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Bob Fosse's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19272026
Gas$0.21$3.45/gal
Average home$6,100$435,000
Average income$3,700$67,500
Movie ticket$0.25$11.95
Postage stamp$0.02$0.73
Population119.0M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, IMDb, Wikidata. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.