Charles Strouse, the decorated composer behind such Broadway-turned-Hollywood hit musicals as “Annie” and “Bye Bye Birdie,” died at his home in New York City on Thursday. He was 96 years old.
The composer — known for enduring numbers like “Put on a Happy Face,” “Tomorrow” and “Those Were the Days” — is survived by his four children, Benjamin, Nicholas, Victoria and William Strouse, who announced his passing. He is further survived by his eight grandchildren: Sam and Arthur Strouse, Navah Strouse, Vivian, Weston and Ever Brush, and Owen and Theodore Strouse. He was predeceased by wife and choreographer Barbara Siman, whom he married in 1962, and passed away in 2023.
Over his seven-decade career spanning stage and screen, the entertainment industry stalwart won the coveted Tony, Grammy and Emmy Award for his work. Additional Broadway musicals he created beyond “Bye Bye Birdie” and “Annie” are the Tony-winning “Applause,” and the Tony-nominated “Golden Boy,” “Charlie & Algernon,” “Rags,” and “Nick & Nora,” the majority of which were co-created with his longtime lyricist and writing partner Lee Adams.
Elsewhere, he worked on Mel Brooks musical “All American” and “It’s a Bird… It’s a Plane… It’s Superman!” His biggest stage hit, “Annie” ran for over 2,300 performances on Broadway, where it has been revived twice and inspired hundreds of worldwide productions. It has also been adapted for two film and two television productions.
Strause’s film scores include “Bonnie and Clyde” (1967), “The Night They Raided Minsky’s” (1968), “There Was a Crooked Man” (1970),” Just Tell Me What You Want,” and “All Dogs Go To Heaven” (1989).
A 1986 inductee into the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Theatre Hall of Fame, Strause published his autobiography, “Put on a Happy Face: A Broadway Memoir,” in 2008 via Union Square Press.
A private ceremony will be held at Frank E. Campbell Funeral Chapel in New York City.
