American actress and dancer who won four Tony Awards for her musical comedy performances, and served as an uncredited choreographer’s assistant and specialty dance coach for theater and film. With flaming red hair and a quaver in her voice, Verdon was a critically acclaimed performer on Broadway in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. Having originated many roles in musicals she is also strongly identified with her second husband, director–choreographer Bob Fosse, remembered as the dancer–collaborator–muse for whom he choreographed much of his work and as the guardian of his legacy after his death.
Verdon’s parents were British, with her father a former gardener and her mother a vaudeville dancer. They had immigrated, via Canada, to California where her father became a stage electrician for MGM studios.
She took lessons at age two to strengthen her crippled legs. As an infant, her legs were so badly bent that medical advisors recommended they be broken and reset. Her mother refused, put her in corrective shoes, and started her on dance lessons. She had a first recital at age four, and was in her first theater show at six.
Verdon attended public elementary and high schools in Los Angeles. During childhood, she wore corrective boots designed to support her legs. After taking dancing lessons, Gwen appeared with her mother in a dance recital in Los Angeles, and at six was billed as “the world’s fastest tapper” at local theaters. When she became a teenager, she modeled for bathing suit pictures, and danced in chorus lines in night clubs. She also appeared in a revival of “Showboat” in Los Angeles, and was a pro before she ever studied ballet.
In her early 20s, she went to work as an assistant to a dance director, had a few small parts, but mostly worked behind the scenes, teaching and directing. In 1953, she tried out for the Broadway show “Can-Can.” She got the part and won a Tony award for her work. In 1955-1956, she appeared on Broadway as Lola in “Damn Yankees” and won her second Tony. She appeared in movies, plays and more television performances and a long list of hit musical comedies.
Verdon married Hollywood writer James Henaghan in 1942. They had a son, James, and divorced five years later. She married Bob Fosse in April 1960 and they had a daughter. They were legally separated in 1976. Her hobbies included making cabinets, refinishing old furniture, painting and sculpturing.
Verdon died of a heart attack on 18 October 2000, aged 75, in Woodstock, Vermont.
Link to Wikipedia biography