Elton John, who won an Emmy this Monday for his Disney special Elton John Live: Farewell From Dodger Stadium, has become part of a club with very few members called EGOT. It is made up of only 19 members, who have won an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar and a Tony, hence the acronym EGOT.
The British singer, 76, had previously won, in 2000 and 1995, two Oscars in the category of best original song (I’m Gonna) Love Me Again in Rocketman and Can You Feel The Love Tonight in The Lion King, respectively. In 2000 he also won the Tony Award for best original soundtrack (music and/or lyrics) written for theater for the play Aida. Throughout his career, he has also won six Grammy Awards.
The entrance to the EGOT club occurred this Monday when he won in the special category with his last performance on the North American farewell tour at the Los Angeles baseball stadium.
The rock star was not present at the Emmy ceremony, but in a statement he said he was “very honored to join the incredibly talented group of EGOT winners tonight.” “The journey to this point has been filled with passion, dedication and the unwavering support of my fans around the world. “Tonight is a testament to the power of the arts and the joy they bring to all of our lives,” he said. “Thank you to everyone who has supported me throughout my career, I am incredibly grateful.”
From this moment on, the British performer joins the ranks of EGOT and becomes member number 19. Below, these are the artists that make up this exclusive group:
Last year, Viola Davis achieved EGOT status after winning a Grammy Award for narrating the audiobook of her memoir Finding Me. The actress won her first Tony Award in 2001 for her supporting role in the play King Hedley II and in 2010, her second Tony Award for her starring role in the Broadway revival of the play. Fences. In 2015, she became the first black person to win the Emmy for best lead actress in a drama for her role in the series How to Get Away With Murder and just a year later she would win the Oscar for best supporting actress for the adaptation film of the play Fences, in which he reprized his Tony-winning stage role. Davis became the fourth black performer to win the quartet of awards, following Whoopi Goldberg, John Legend and Jennifer Hudson.
She was 40 years old when she entered the club and she achieved it by being one of the producers of A strange loop, which won the Tony in the category of best new musical. Hudson is the youngest woman (40 years old) and the second African-American in the group, after Whoopi Goldberg. In 2007 she won the Oscar for best supporting actress for her role as Effie White in Dreamgirls. She later won two Grammys, one for best R album
The singer made history in 2018 by becoming the youngest winner in the history of the EGOT at the age of 39. John Legend has a dozen Grammys on his resume. In 2015 he won the Oscar as composer of the theme Glory from the film Selma; and two years later he won the Tony Award as producer of the new version of the classic Jitney. Legend rounded out the awards pool thanks to his status as producer of the television musical special Jesus Christ Superstar, in which he also played the lead.
The British composer, director of numerous plays from the late 20th century, has produced 16 musicals, two soundtracks and a Requiem mass in Latin. Among his awards are three Tonys, three Grammys, an Oscar, an Emmy, seven Oliviers and a Golden Globe.
The English author of lyrics for musicals is famous for having written the songs for the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar; Don’t cry for me, Argentina, from the musical Evita, and the Disney films Aladdin and The Lion King. In 1980 he won his first Tony and in 2018 he completed the quartet with an Emmy.
In 2004 the artist won the Tony for the musical Avenue Q. Then came two Emmys for his work in the animated series The Wonder Pets!. The Book of Mormon gave him his first Grammy and two new Tonys. López completed the awards series in 2014 with the Oscar for his song for Frozen.
The producer won the 1984 Emmy for best children’s program. It was followed by the first of his eight Tonys and then the Oscar for No Country for Old Men, the Coen brothers’ film. He won the Tony for his work as producer of the influential musical The Book of Mormon.
The composer won two Oscars for The Little Mermaid in 1988. In 1990 he received a special Emmy for an anti-drug special: Wonderful Things to Say No to. A year later he won the first of his 11 Grammys. In 2012 he won the Tony for the musical Newsies.
The protagonist of The Color Purple premiered in 1985 with the Grammy for best comedy album and in 1990 she added new recognition with her Oscar for best supporting role for Ghost. She also received three Emmy Awards between 1997 and 2009. Her last award was the Tony, which she won in 2012 as a producer of the musical Thorouhgly Modern Millie.
Director and screenwriter Mel Brooks achieved the EGOT in 2001 and took 34 years to achieve it. He won four Emmys, three Grammys as a composer and comedian; the Oscar for the script of the original film of The Producers and three Tony Awards for the stage version of this, the most awarded musical in the history of New York stages.
The director of Armas de mujer, Ángeles en América and Closer became a member of the EGOT in 2001. In the sixties he had already won the Grammy, the first of his nine Tonys, and the Oscar. The Emmy had to wait 34 years.
The musician is the most unknown of all EGOT recipients. Jonathan Tunick premiered in 1978 with an Oscar for a category that no longer exists: best musical adaptation. In the eighties he received the Emmy for directing the Night of 100 Stars gala and the Grammy for the song No One is Alone. In 1997 he won the Tony for his orchestration of Titanic, a musical that had nothing to do with the film despite being released the same year and having the same name.
The song from the film Just the Way We Were earned the composer the Oscar and the Grammy. The New Yorker completed the EGOT with his Tony for the soundtrack for the musical A Chorus Line and four Emmy Awards, two of them for composing and directing a show for Barbra Streisand.
The actress completed the EGOT posthumously. In 1954 she won the Oscar for her work in Roman Holiday. A year later she received the Tony for Ondine. It took 40 years for the actress, who died in 1993, to complete the prize pool: in 1993 she was given the Emmy for her documentary series Gardens of the World with Audrey Hepburn and in 1994 she received the Grammy for best album for children.
The British actor was the oldest artist to achieve the EGOT when at 87 he won the Emmy as actor in a miniseries for his work in Summer’s Lease. He had previously won the Oscar for best supporting actor for Arthur, the Golden Bachelor, the Grammy for best spoken word album and three Tony awards, one of them honorary.
The actress, singer and dancer was the first Latin American person to obtain the EGOT. In 1961 she won the Oscar as supporting actress for West Side Story. In 1973 her album The Electric Company won her the Grammy for best children’s album. Two years later, she won the Tony for The Ritz. In 1977 Moreno received the Emmy that she had pending for her work in Los teleñecos.
The American actress was the first woman to become an EGOT artist. She premiered with an Oscar in 1932 thanks to the film The Sin of Madelon Claudet; After her came three Tonys, the Emmy for the Schlitz Playhouse of Stars series and the Grammy for best spoken word album.
The legendary composer was the first artist to achieve the EGOT. In 1945 he won the Oscar for his song for the musical State Fair. Five years later came the first of his six Tonys for South Pacific. The Sound of Music also earned him a Grammy. Rodgers completed the EGOT in 1962 for his composition for The Valiant Years, a series about Winston Churchill.
Other artists such as Barbra Streisand, Liza Minelli, Harry Belafonte and James Earl Jones are also among those chosen, although they won the four awards under special conditions, that is, they did not compete for them but were awarded for various causes. Barbra Streisand completed the requirements in 1970, when she received the honorary Tony. Liza Minnelli received an honorary Grammy in 1990; In 2014, the Hollywood Academy decided to give Harry Belfaonte the Jean Hearsholt Award for her history as a social activist; and James Earl Jones received the honorary Oscar in 2011 that earned him the EGOT title.
