Biography
Gower Carlyle Champion (June 22, 1919 – August 25, 1980) was an American actor, theatre director, choreographer, and dancer. Champion was born on June 22, 1919, in Geneva, Illinois, as the son of John W. Champion and Beatrice Carlisle. He was raised in Los Angeles, California, where he graduated from Fairfax High School. He studied dance from an early age and, at the age of fifteen, toured nightclubs with friend Jeanne Tyler billed as "Gower and Jeanne, America's Youngest Dance Team". In 1939, "Gower and Jeanne" danced to the music of Larry Clinton and his Orchestra in a Warner Brothers & Vitaphone film short-subject, "The Dipsy Doodler" (released in 1940).
Awards & recognition
- Tony Award — Best Direction of a Musical · 1968
- Tony Award — Best Direction of a Musical · 1964
- Tony Award — Best Direction of a Musical · 1961
- American Choreography Awards
- star on Hollywood Walk of Fame
Show all 10 awards →
- Tony Award — Best Direction of a Musical · 1981 · nominated
- Tony Award — Best Direction of a Musical · 1975 · nominated
- Tony Award — Best Direction of a Musical · 1973 · nominated
- Tony Award — Best Direction of a Musical · 1967 · nominated
- Tony Award — Best Direction of a Musical · 1962 · nominated
Filmography12 titles
42nd Street: The Musical
That's Entertainment, Part II
What's My Line?
The Ed Sullivan Show
Rhapsody in Blue
Show Boat
Three for the Show
Words and Music
My Six Loves
Till the Clouds Roll By
The Bank Shot
Give a Girl a Break