It is a high honor to win an Oscar, Emmy, Tony or Grammy. However, winning all four is almost unheard of. There are eleven people total that have won the grand slam of show business and another may win one this year.
Robert Lopez, the songwriter of Frozen’s “Let It Go,” is up for an Oscar this year and, if it wins, that will complete his EGOT crown. He previously won a Tony award for songwriting in The Book of Mormon, an Emmy for his work in The Wonder Pets, and a Grammy for his work in The Book of Mormon soundtrack.
But what about the other people? Because of how difficult it is to win an award, there are only 11 winners thus far and those who have won have not been very recognizable names. Although they’re not popular, they are still worth knowing. The awards go to directors, songwriters and producers.
EGOT has been very popular on TV and in movies. For example, on NBC’s 30 Rock, irresponsible Tracy Jordan (Tracy Morgan) spent an entire season of the show trying to win the four awards before he had a daughter.
Being an EGOT winner is a huge deal and these winners need to be recognized each award season. Here are the important, talented EGOT winners.
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11. Helen Hayes
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Helen Hayes was the first woman to win all four awards. It took her a 45 year span to win all of the awards herself. She is considered to be the “First Lady of the American Theatre.” There is an award show named after her, the Helen Hayes Awards, recognizing excellence in theater.
Emmy: “Best Actress;” Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
Grammy: “Best Spoken Word Recording;” Great American Documents
Oscar: “Best Actress in a Leading Role;” The Sin of Madelon Claudet
Tony: “Best Actress, Dramatic;” Happy Birthday
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10. Rita Moreno
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Moreno is a singer and an actress. She played Anita in the film adaption of West Side Story. She also starred in multiple musicals in the 1960’s. In 1993, she was invited to perform at President Bill Clinton’s inauguration.
Emmy: “Outstanding Continuing or Single Performance by a Supporting Actress in Variety or Music;” The Muppet Show
Grammy: “Best Recording for Children,” The Electric Company
Oscar: “Best Actress in a Supporting Role;” West Side Story
Tony: “Best Featured or Supporting Actress in a Play;” The Ritz
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9. John Gielgud
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John Gielgud was known as a great Shakespearean actor. He played in roles such as The Tempest and A Midsummer Night’s Dream He is known for playing Hamlet over 500 times in only six productions.
Emmy: “Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Special;” Summer’s Lease
Grammy: “Best spoken Word, Documentary or Drama Recording,” Ages of Man
Oscar: “Best Actor in a Supporting Role;” Arthur
Tony:”Outstanding Foreign Company;” The Importance of Being Earnest
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8. Marvin Hamlisch
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Marvin Hamlisch is a composer and a conductor. Along with winning the four awards, Hamlisch has won a Pulitzer Prize and two Golden Globes. He was a child prodigy. He was accepted into Juilliard. Hamlisch composed music for Wood Allen films such as Take the Money and Run and Bananas.
Emmy: “Outstanding Individual Achievement in Music Direction;” Barbra: The Concert
Grammy: “Song of the Year;” “The Way We Were”
Oscar: “Best Music, Original Dramatic Score;” The Way We Were
Tony: “Best Musical Score;” A Chorus Line
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7. Jonathan Tunick
Jonathan Tunick is a orchestrator, musical director and composer. He is best known for his work with Stephen Sondheim and the production, Company. He is on the American Theatre Hall of Fame and was inducted in January 2009.
Emmy: “Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction;” Night of 100 Stars
Grammy: “Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocals;” “No One is Alone,” Into the Woods
Oscar: “Best Musical, Original Score and Its Adaption or Best Adaption Score;” A Little Night Music
Tony: “Best Orchestrations;” Titanic
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6. Mel Brooks
Mel Brooks is a director, writer and actor. He also is a comedian and songwriter. Three of his films are on American Film Institutes list of the 100 comedy films of all time. His award winning The Producers is number 11 on the list.
Emmy: “Outstanding Writing Achievement in Variety;” The Sid Caesar, Imogene Coca, Carl Reiner, Howard Morris Special
Grammy: “Best Spoken Comedy Album;” The 2000 Year Old Man in the Year 2000.
Oscar: “Best Writing, Story and Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen;” The Producers
Tony: “Best Book of a Musical;” The Producers
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5. Mike Nichols
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You may know him as Diane Sawyer’s husband. He is also one half of the comedy duo Nichols and May, along with Elaine May. He was involved in other movies such as Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Carnal Knowledge, Silkwood, Working Girl and Closer.
Emmy: “Outstanding Made for Television Movie;” Wit
Grammy: “Best Comedy Album;” An Evening with Mike Nichols and Elaine May
Oscar: “Best Director;” The Graduate
Tony: “Best Direction of a Play;” Barefoot in the Park
Richard Rodgers was the first person to win all four awards. He is was a composer for more than 900 songs and for 43 Broadway musicals. He also composed music for films and television. He is known for writing songs with Oscar Hammerstein II, being called Rodgers & Hammerstein.
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4. Richard Rodgers
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Emmy: “Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composed;” Winston Churchill: The Valiant Years
Grammy: “Best Show Album;” The Sound of Music
Oscar: “Best Song;” “It Might as Well Be Spring,” State Fair
Tony: “Best Musical,” South Pacific
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3. Scott Rudin
Emmy: “Outstanding Children’s Program;” He Makes Me Feel Like Dancin’
Grammy: “Best Musical Theater Album;” The Book of Mormon
Oscar: “Best Picture;” No Country for Old Men
Tony: “Best Musical;” Passion
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2. Whoopi Goldberg
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Whoopi Goldberg is best known for her roles on Sister Act, Ghost and being one of the hosts of The View. It has been questionable whether she can be truly called an EGOT winner because her Emmy is a Daytime Emmy but she discussed it on an episode of 30 Rock and has stated that it counts.
Emmy: “Outstanding Special Class Special;” Beyond Tara: The Extraordinary Life of Hattie McDaniel
Grammy: “Best Comedy Recording;” Whoopi Goldberg- Original Broadway Show Recording
Oscar: “Best Actress in a Supporting Role;” Ghost
Tony: “Best Musical,” Thoroughly Modern Millie
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1. Audrey Hepburn
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Audrey Hepburn is an actress and singer. She was in iconic roles such as Breakfast at Tiffany’s and My Fair Lady. She is listed as third on American Film Institute’s list of greatest female screen legends and acted during Hollywood’s Golden Age.
Emmy: “Outstanding Individual Achievement Informational Programming;” Gardens of the World with Audrey Hepburn
Grammy: “Best Spoken Word Album for Children;” Audrey Hepburn’s Enchanted Tales
Oscar: “Best Actress in a Leading Role;” Roman Holiday
Tony: “Best Actress in a Drama;” Ondine