Agnes de Mille

Agnes de Mille was born on September 18, 1905 in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA as Agnes George de Mille.

Choreographer Agnes de Mille came from a prominent family. A graduate from UC-Berkeley (class of 1926), she was the daughter of William C. de Mille, niece of Cecil B. DeMille, granddaughter of Beatrice DeMille, sister of Peggy George, and sister-in-law of B.P. Fineman.

Agnes de Mille was born at 357 West 118th Street in Harlem, close to Morningside Park.

De Mille's husband, Walter Foy Prude, died of heart failure at St. Vincent's Hospital in Manhattan after a long bout with emphysema. Her own ashes are inurned in Merriewold Park, Forestburgh, Sullivan County, New York, beside those of her husband. The couple had a son, Jonathan (born 1946).

She won two Tony Awards as Best Choreographer: in 1947 for "Brigadoon", in a tie with Michael Kidd for "Finian's Rainbow", and in 1962 for "Kwamina", in a tie with Joe Layton for "No Strings". She was also nominated in the same category in 1959 for "Goldilocks".

She is known for her work on Oklahoma! (1955), The Ragamuffin (1916) and Carousel (1956). She was married to Walter Foy Prude.

A witty and vivid writer and speaker, she remained unquenchable in spirit even after being disabled by a cerebral hemorrhage on May 15, 1975, as she was about to go on stage for her famous lecture, 'Converstions About the Dance'. It paralyzed the right side of her body. She had to undergo two operations to remove blood clots. With the aid of rehabilitative therapy and her own enormous willpower, she recovered sufficiently to continue her career, learning to write with her left hand in the process.

She was awarded the American National Medal of the Arts in 1986 by the National Endowment of the Arts in Washington D.C.