Herbert Ross

Biography

Herbert David Ross (May 13, 1927 - October 9, 2001) was an American actor, choreographer, director and producer who worked predominantly in the stage and film. Ross was born in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Martha Grundfast and Louis Chester Ross, a postal clerk. At the age of 9, his mother died and his father moved the family to Miami and opened a luncheonette. In 1942, Ross' stage debut came as "Third Witch" in a touring company of Macbeth. The next year brought his first Broadway performance credits with Something for the Boys. By 1950, he was a choreographer with the American Ballet Theatre and choreographed his first Broadway production, the Arthur Schwartz-Dorothy Fields musical adaptation of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. Ross's first film assignment came as an uncredited choreographer on Carmen Jones (1954). In the UK, he choreographed The Young Ones (1961) and Summer Holiday (1963), both starring Cliff Richard. Later, he worked with Barbra Streisand as choreographer and director of musical numbers for Funny Girl (1968). His film directorial debut came with the musical version of Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1969), made by MGM-British, with Peter O'Toole and Petula Clark. He went o…

Directed

1. Footloose (1984) — Director
2. Steel Magnolias (1989) — Director
3. The Secret of My Success (1987) — Director
4. Play It Again, Sam (1972) — Director
5. My Blue Heaven (1990) — Director
6. Boys on the Side (1995) — Director
7. The Goodbye Girl (1977) — Director
8. The Last of Sheila (1973) — Director
9. Undercover Blues (1993) — Director
10. California Suite (1978) — Director
11. The Seven-Per-Cent Solution (1976) — Director
12. The Sunshine Boys (1975) — Director
13. Pennies from Heaven (1981) — Director
14. Protocol (1984) — Director
15. True Colors (1991) — Director
16. The Turning Point (1977) — Director
17. Funny Lady (1975) — Director
18. The Owl and the Pussycat (1970) — Director
19. Max Dugan Returns (1983) — Director
20. Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1969) — Director
21. Nijinsky (1980) — Director
22. T.R. Baskin (1971) — Director
23. I Ought to Be in Pictures (1982) — Director
24. Dancers (1987) — Director
25. Wonderful Town (1958) — Director

Also appeared in

1. Great Performances (1971) — Self
2. Shirley Maclaine: Kicking Up Her Heels (1996) — Self
3. Walter Matthau: Diamond in the Rough (1997) — Self
4. The Making of 'The Goodbye Girl' (1977) — Self
5. Follies: In Concert (1986) — Self- Concert Director
6. Jean-Pierre Aumont, charme et fou-rires (1999) — Self
7. This is Streisand (1968)
8. Placido Domingo's Tales from the Opera (1994) — Self - Director
9. The Amazing Miss Cummings: An Actress at Work and Play (1977)
10. Sondheim on Broadway: Follies - Four Days in New York (1986) — Self