Stephen Sondheim, Oscar Hammerstein and More Who Died Just an Emmy Shy of EGOT Status

Sondheim won eight Tony Awards, plus a special Tony in 2008 for lifetime achievement in the theatre. He won seven Grammys, plus a trustees award from the Recording Academy in 2007. He won one Oscar in 1991 for writing “Sooner or Later (I Always Get My Man),” which Madonna sang in the film Dick Tracy.

Sondheim won two Tonys in 1971 for his classic Company and won one award each for A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1963), Follies (1972), A Little Night Music (1973), Sweeney Todd (1979), Into the Woods (1988) and Passion (1994). His highest-profile Grammy win came in 1976 when “Send in the Clowns” (from A Little Night Music) became the third (and most recent) song from a Broadway musical to win song of the year.

Sondheim was never even nominated for a Primetime Emmy. The closest he came was when Stephen Sondheim’s ‘Passion’ (Live from Lincoln Center) on PBS won outstanding special class program in 2005, but only the producers were honored.

Sondheim died in 2021 at age 91.

Hammerstein won five Tony Awards, two Oscars and a Grammy (plus a trustees award from the Recording Academy in 1992). He won three Tonys in 1950 for Rodgers & Hammerstein’s classic South Pacific and one each for the team’s The King and I (1952) and The Sound of Music (1960). His Grammy was also for The Sound of Music, which won as best show album (original cast) in 1961.

His Oscars, both for best original song, were for “The Last Time I Saw Paris” from Lady Be Good (1942, written with Jerome Kern) and “It Might as Well Be Spring” from State Fair (1946, written with Richard Rodgers).

Hammerstein died in 1960 at age 65.

Lerner won three Oscars, two Tonys and a Grammy. He won his first Oscar (best original screenplay) for An American in Paris in 1952 and two more (best original song and best adapted screenplay) for Gigi in 1959. He won Tonys for the glorious My Fair Lady (1957) and for a belated Broadway adaptation of Gigi (1974), both collaborations with Frederick Loewe.

He won a Grammy in 1966 for best score from an original show album for On a Clear Day You Can See Forever, on which he collaborated with Burton Lane. He also received a trustees award from the Recording Academy in 1997 in tandem with Loewe.

Lerner died in 1986 at age 67.

Styne won an Oscar in 1955 for writing “Three Coins in the Fountain” with Sammy Cahn; a Grammy in 1965 for writing the score for Funny Girl with Bob Merrill; and two Tonys in 1968 for the show Hallelujah, Baby!, on which he collaborated with Betty Comden and Adolph Green.

The pretty but lightweight “Three Coins in the Fountain” beat the Judy Garland torch classic “The Man That Got Away” for the Oscar, though Funny Girl turned Barbra Streisand into a superstar. So, Styne’s Diva Scorecard is 1-1.

Styne was never nominated for an Emmy, but Broadway Sings: The Music of Jule Styne, recorded for PBS’ Great Performances series in 1987, won outstanding achievement in music direction, though the honor just went to the show’s music directors.

Styne died in 1994 at age 88.

Loesser won an Oscar in 1950 for writing “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” from Neptune’s Daughter. For decades, the song was seen as a lighthearted depiction of the game of seduction. In the #MeToo era, it has become more controversial.

He won Tonys for Guys and Dolls in 1951 and How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying in 1962. He also won a Grammy in 1962 for the cast album to How to Succeed, which spawned such memorable songs as “Brotherhood of Man” and “I Believe in You.”

Loesser died in 1969 at age 59.

 Fonda won a Tony in 1948 for Mister Roberts, an Oscar in 1982 for On Golden Pond and a Grammy in 1977 for best spoken word recording for Great American Documents, which he recorded in tandem with three other legends – Helen Hayes, Orson Welles and James Earl Jones.

Fonda was too ill to attend the 1982 Oscars, but his daughter Jane Fonda accepted his award for him. He died less than five months later.

In addition, Fonda received a special Tony Award in 1979 and an Honorary Oscar in 1980. The latter award was inscribed, “To Henry Fonda, the consummate actor, in recognition of his brilliant accomplishments and enduring contribution to the art of motion pictures.”

Henry Fonda came closer to winning a Primetime Emmy than any of these other stars who just needed an Emmy to become EGOTs. Fonda was nominated for Primetime Emmys in acting categories three times, for The Red Pony Bell System Family Theater (1973), IBM Presents Clarence Darrow (1975) and Gideon’s Trumpet Hallmark Hall of Fame (1980).

Fonda died in 1982 at age 77.