Austrian-born American composer Frederick Loewe was BOTD in 1901. Born in Berlin in the German Empire to Austrian Jewish parents, his father was a popular operetta star. He developed an early talent for music, composing songs from the age of seven, and studied at the Stern Conservatory in Berlin. A professional musician from his early teens, he performed as a solo pianist with the Berlin Philharmonic when he was 13. He moved with his father to New York City in 1924, determined to write for Broadway, supporting himself as a pianist in nightclubs and cinemas. In 1942, he met lyricist Alan Jay Lerner, collaborating on the farce The Life of the Party for a stock theatre company. Their 1947 musical fantasy Brigadoon became a success on Broadway and the West End, spawning the hit songs Almost Like Being in Love and The Heather on the Hill and was filmed in 1954. Their next musical Paint Your Wagon, set in the California Gold Rush, was less-well received, though its songs Wand’rin’ Star and They Call the Wind Maria became popular hits. They achieved global success with their 1956 musical My Fair Lady, an adaptation of George Bernard Shaw‘s play Pygmalion about a Cockney flower girl who is taught to speak the King’s English by a tyrannical linguist. The original Broadway production became a cultural juggernaut, winning the Tony Award for Best Musical and making a star of its lead actress Julie Andrews, while the recording of the Broadway show became one of the best-selling musical albums of all time. Lerner & Loewe quickly became the most sought-after writers in Hollywood. Their next project, a musical adaptation of Colette‘s novella Gigi, became a successful film by Vincente Minnelli starring Audrey Hepburn, winning nine Oscars including Best Picture. Their 1960 musical Camelot, based on the legend of King Arthur, was also a success. Now wealthy and successful, Loewe moved to Palm Springs, California, living in effective retirement. In 1973, he and Lerner were invited to write songs for a stage production of Gigi, winning him a Tony Award for Best Original Score. Their final joint project, an adaptation of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s children’s book The Little Prince, was coolly received, but earned them Oscar nominations for songwriting. Introverted and highly secretive, Loewe married Ernestine Zerline in 1931, shortly after his arrival in the United States. The marriage was childless and possibly sexless, ending in divorce in 1957. He also had a relationship with Francine Greshler from 1971 until his death in 1988, aged 86. Biographers and historians have speculated that Loewe may have been gay, pointing to his cohort of gay friends including Minnelli, Cole Porter, Jack Cole and Moss Hart and his love of a good showtune.