U.S. federal government · Public domain

A Broadway composer-lyricist who built a career on what he called "the simple, hummable showtune," at a moment when musical theater was drifting toward darker, more complex scores. Hello, Dolly! became the longest-running musical in Broadway history at the time, and La Cage aux Folles, in 1983, was the first hit Broadway musical centered on a gay couple. He received the Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in 2009 and a Kennedy Center Honor the following year.