Charles Louis Strouse (June 7, 1928 – May 15, 2025) was an American composer and lyricist best known for writing the music to the Broadway musicals Bye Bye Birdie, Applause, and Annie.

Background

Charles Louis Strouse, a native of the Upper West Side of Manhattan, New York City, was born on June 7, 1928, to Jewish parents, Ethel (née Newman) and Ira Strouse, who worked in the tobacco business. His parents suffered from physical and mental health issues, and the family found respite from their troubles when they would sing songs together at the piano, which his mother played. He had initially aspired to a career in classical music, but Boulanger assured him that his talent for "light music" was valuable, saying "to make someone forget illness and suffering is also a calling.” For this show, Strouse won his first Tony Award in the category of best musical.

Strouse's next show was All American (1962), with a book by Mel Brooks and lyrics by Adams; it was not a success, closing after 80 performances, but it produced the standard “Once Upon a Time” (recorded by Perry Como, Eddie Fisher, Al Martino, Tony Bennett, Frank Sinatra, and Bobby Darin, among dozens of others).

Following this was Golden Boy (1964, also with Adams), starring Sammy Davis Jr., which ran for 568 performances. The musical It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's Superman (1966, based on the popular comic strip) closed after 129 performances, but introduced the song "You've Got Possibilities" sung by Linda Lavin. Its theme would also be adopted by Washington, D.C. television station WTOP (now WUSA) for news broadcasts.

In 1970, Applause (starring Lauren Bacall, with book by Betty Comden and Adolph Green, and lyrics by Adams) won Strouse his second Tony Award for Best Musical. In 1977, Strouse adapted another comic strip for the stage, creating the hit Annie, which included the song "Tomorrow," which quickly became a "monstrous song hit," and garnered him his third Tony Award and two Grammy Awards.

Other Strouse musicals include Charlie and Algernon (1979), Dance a Little Closer (1983, with lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner, which closed after one performance), Rags (1986; which closed after four performances and 18 previews), Nick & Nora (1993, which closed after 9 performances), and An American Tragedy (1995, with lyrics by David Shaber, performed at Muhlenberg College).

Strouse also wrote musical revues, many with Adams, and his songs were included in revues. The revues included Shoestring Revue (with Adams and Michael Stewart) (1955 – Off–Broadway), Medium Rare (with Adams) (1960 – Chicago), By Strouse (1978 – Off–Broadway at The Ballroom), Upstairs At O'Neals (1982 – Nightclub Revue), Can't Stop Dancin (1994 – Marymount Theatre), and A Lot Of Living! (1996 – conceived and directed by Barbara Siman at Rainbow and Stars).

Strouse wrote the music and lyrics for the animated special Lyle, Lyle Crocodile which aired on HBO in 1987. His film scores include Bonnie and Clyde (1967), There Was a Crooked Man... (1970, with Henry Fonda and Kirk Douglas), the Norman Lear production of The Night They Raided Minsky's (1968, with Adams), and the popular animated movie All Dogs Go to Heaven (1989). He and Adams also wrote the theme song “Those Were the Days” for the Norman Lear television show All in the Family. Additionally, the title sequence, of Archie and Edith Bunker performing the tune at their piano, was inspired by Strouse's childhood memories of playing music with his parents at home. and his opera Nightingale (1982), starring Sarah Brightman, had a successful run in London, followed by many subsequent productions. In 1979, Strouse founded the ASCAP Musical Theatre Workshop in New York, through which many young composers and lyricists have found a forum for their work. Real Men, for which Strouse wrote the music and lyrics, premiered in January 2005 at the Coconut Grove Playhouse in Miami, Florida, and his musical Studio, premiered at Theatre Building Chicago in August 2006. The musical Minsky's, with music by Strouse, book by Bob Martin, and lyrics by Susan Birkenhead (loosely based on the movie The Night They Raided Minsky's) premiered in January 2009 at the Ahmanson Theatre.

Recognition

Strouse won Emmy Awards for music in television adaptions of Bye Bye Birdie and Annie. He was also the recipient of the 1999 ASCAP Foundation Richard Rodgers Award and the Oscar Hammerstein Award. He became a member of the American Theater Hall of Fame (in 2001) and the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Personal life and death

Strouse was married to director-choreographer Barbara Siman until her death on February 16, 2023. They had four children.

Strouse described himself as a Jewish atheist, and said that after his sister died young from breast cancer, he no longer believed in God.

Strouse died at his Manhattan home on May 15, 2025, at the age of 96. At the time of his death, he was the sole remaining member of the team that produced Annie, following Thomas Meehan's death in 2017, and Martin Charnin's death in 2019.

Musicals

  • A Pound in Your Pocket (1959; Palm Beach, Florida)
  • Bye Bye Birdie (1960)
  • All American (1962)
  • Golden Boy (1964)
  • It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's Superman (1966)
  • Applause (1970)
  • Six (1971, Off-Broadway)
  • I and Albert (1972, London)
  • Annie (1977)
  • A Broadway Musical (1978)
  • Charlie and Algernon (1979, London, as Flowers for Algernon); (1981)
  • Bring Back Birdie (1981)
  • Nightingale (1982; this work is often described as an opera)
  • Dance a Little Closer (1983)
  • Mayor (1985, Off-Broadway)
  • Rags (1986)
  • Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile (1988; Albany, NY)
  • Annie 2: Miss Hannigan's Revenge (1989, Washington, DC)
  • Charlotte's Web (1989; Wilmington, Delaware)
  • Nick & Nora (1991)
  • Annie Warbucks (1993, Off-Broadway)
  • Bojangles (1993; Richmond, Virginia)
  • An American Tragedy (1995, Muhlenberg College, 2010)
  • Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day (1998)
  • Marty (2002, Boston)
  • Real Men (2005, Miami)
  • Studio (2006, Chicago)
  • Minsky's (2009, Los Angeles)
  • Martin: A New American Musical (2011, Miami)

Film scores

  • Bonnie and Clyde (1967)
  • The Night They Raided Minsky's (1968)
  • There Was a Crooked Man... (1970)
  • Just Tell Me What You Want (1980)
  • Annie (1982)
  • The Worst Witch (1986)
  • Ishtar (1987)
  • All Dogs Go to Heaven (1989) (songs only)
  • Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day (1990)

Awards and nominations

  • 1961 Tony Award for Best Musical (Bye Bye Birdie, winner)
  • 1965 Tony Award for Best Musical (Golden Boy, nominee)
  • 1970 Tony Award for Best Musical (Applause, winner)
  • 1977 Tony Award for Best Original Score (Annie, winner)
  • 1977 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music (Annie, nominee)
  • 1981 Tony Award for Best Original Score (Charlie and Algernon, nominee)
  • 1986 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music (Mayor, nominee)
  • 1987 Tony Award for Best Original Score (Rags, nominee)
  • 1987 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music (Rags, nominee)
  • 1996 Emmy Award for Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics (Bye Bye Birdie, winner)
  • 2012 Rochester (NY) Music Hall of Fame (Lifetime Body of Work)
  • 2013 Five Towns College named Charles Strouse School of Music

References

  • Interview with Charles Strouse in International Songwriters Association's "Songwriter Magazine"