Joel Grey facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Joel Grey
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Grey in 2022
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| Born |
Joel David Katz
April 11, 1932 |
| Occupation |
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| Years active | 1951–present |
| Spouse(s) |
Jo Wilder
(m. 1958; div. 1982) |
| Children | 2, including Jennifer |
| Parent(s) |
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| Relatives | Ronald A. Katz (brother) |
Joel Grey (born Joel David Katz; April 11, 1932) is a famous American actor, singer, dancer, photographer, and theatre director. He is most recognized for his role as the Master of Ceremonies in the musical Cabaret on Broadway and in the 1972 movie version.
Joel Grey has won many important awards, including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Tony Award. In 2023, he received a special Lifetime Achievement Tony Award for his amazing career.
He was also nominated for Tony Awards for his roles in musicals like George M! (1968), Goodtime Charley (1975), and The Grand Tour (1979). Joel Grey played Amos Hart in the Broadway show Chicago (1996). He was also the first actor to play the Wizard of Oz in the musical Wicked (2003). Later, he played Moonface Martin in the 2011 show Anything Goes.
Joel Grey also directed the 2011 play The Normal Heart, which earned him a Tony Award nomination for Best Director. In movies, he was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture for his role in Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins (1985). He has appeared in many other films and TV shows, earning an Emmy nomination for his role in Brooklyn Bridge (1993).
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Early Life and Family
Joel Grey was born in Cleveland, Ohio, on April 11, 1932. His parents were Goldie "Grace" Epstein and Mickey Katz, who was also a well-known actor, comedian, and musician. Both of his parents were Jewish. Joel went to Alexander Hamilton High School in Los Angeles, California.
A Star is Born: Joel Grey's Career
Starting Out in Theatre and TV
Joel Grey began acting when he was just 10 years old. He joined the Cleveland Play House's children's theatre program in the early 1940s. By the time he was 20, in 1952, he was already performing at the famous Copacabana nightclub in New York.
He changed his last name from Katz to Grey early in his career. His first Broadway show was Borscht Capades, where he was called "Joel Kaye". He returned to Broadway in The Littlest Revue in 1956. He also took over roles in other Broadway shows like Come Blow Your Horn (1961), Stop the World – I Want to Get Off (1962), and Half a Sixpence (1965).
Joel Grey started his TV career on The Colgate Comedy Hour from 1951 to 1954. He also appeared in several TV westerns in the late 1950s and early 1960s, such as Maverick (1959) and Lawman (1960-1961).
Becoming a Star: Cabaret and Beyond
Joel Grey became very famous for creating the role of the Master of Ceremonies in the Broadway musical Cabaret in 1966. He was highly praised for his performance as the mysterious emcee of the Kit Kat Club. For this role, he won the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical.
He also appeared on the TV game show What's My Line? in 1967. After Cabaret, he played George M. Cohan in the 1968 musical George M!, earning another Tony Award nomination.
Joel Grey played the Master of Ceremonies again in the 1972 movie version of Cabaret, directed by Bob Fosse. He won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for this role in 1973. Cabaret won many awards that year, including Best Actress for Liza Minnelli and Best Director for Bob Fosse. Joel Grey also won a BAFTA award and Golden Globes for his performance. He is one of only ten people to win both a Tony Award and an Academy Award for the same role!
In 1976, he was a guest star on The Muppet Show, singing songs from Chicago and Cabaret. He continued to perform in many stage productions, including Goodtime Charley (1975) and The Grand Tour (1979) on Broadway.
Later Career: Movies, TV, and Broadway
In the movie Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins (1985), Joel Grey played Chiun, an elderly Korean martial arts master. This role earned him another Golden Globe nomination. He also appeared in the mystery film Kafka (1991) and the final episode of the TV series Dallas (1991).
He narrated the animated movie Tom and Jerry: The Movie (1992) and had a small role as himself in the film The Player (1992). In 1993, he starred in The Music of Chance. He also received an Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series nomination for his role in the TV series Brooklyn Bridge. In 1995, he appeared in Star Trek: Voyager and performed as the Wizard in The Wizard of Oz in Concert: Dreams Come True.
Joel Grey returned to Broadway in 1996 as Amos Hart in the musical Chicago. This show is about criminals in the 1920s jazz age. His performance earned him the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical.
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In the 2000s, Joel Grey continued to act in movies like Dancer in the Dark (2000) and The Fantasticks (2000). He also had roles in many TV shows, including Buffy the Vampire Slayer (2001), Oz (2003), and Alias (2005). He appeared in Law & Order: Criminal Intent (2003), House (2006), and Grey's Anatomy (2009).
He created the role of the Wizard of Oz in the Broadway musical Wicked in 2003. This popular show is based on the book Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West. Joel Grey acted alongside Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth in this hit show.
In 2011, Joel Grey returned to Broadway in Anything Goes. He also co-directed the Tony Award-winning revival of The Normal Heart that same year. He made guest appearances in TV shows like Nurse Jackie (2012), CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2014), and Park Bench with Steve Buscemi (2014).
In 2016, he was in the Broadway revival of the play The Cherry Orchard. In 2018, Joel Grey directed a Yiddish-language production of Fiddler on the Roof, which became a big success and won awards. He also had a small role in the musical movie Tick, Tick... Boom! (2021). In 2022, he played Morgan Bote in the TV series The Old Man.
Personal Life and Hobbies
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In 1958, Joel Grey married Jo Wilder. They later divorced in 1982. They have two children: actress Jennifer Grey, who starred in the movie Dirty Dancing, and a son named James Grey.
Besides acting, Joel Grey is also a talented photographer. He has published several books of his photographs. His first book, Pictures I Had to Take, came out in 2003. He followed it with Looking Hard at Unexpected Things (2006) and 1.3 – Images from My Phone (2009), which featured photos taken with his phone.
In April 2011, an exhibition of his photography called "Joel Grey/A New York Life" was held at the Museum of the City of New York. His fourth book, The Billboard Papers: Photographs by Joel Grey, was published in 2013 and showed the many billboards of New York City.
Joel Grey also wrote a book about his life called Master of Ceremonies in 2016.
Awards and Honors
Joel Grey has received many awards for his incredible work in theatre, film, and television.
- Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for Cabaret (1972)
- BAFTA Award for Cabaret (1972)
- Golden Globe Award for Cabaret (1972)
- Tony Award for Cabaret (1967)
- Drama Desk Award for Chicago (1997)
- Drama Desk Award for directing The Normal Heart (2011)
- National Board of Review Award for Cabaret (1972)
- National Society of Film Critics Award for Cabaret (1972)
- Lifetime Achievement in Theatre Award (2023)
He was also honored with the Oscar Hammerstein Award for Lifetime Achievement in Musical Theatre in 2016.
Images for kids
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Joel Grey in a publicity photo in 1955
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Joel Grey with Ann Sothern and Don Porter on The Ann Sothern Show, 1960
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Joel Grey at the 45th Emmy Awards, 1993
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Joel Grey at the 2014 Peabody Awards
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Joel Grey with then-wife Jo Wilder in 1979
