In the late night of 1977, Helen Hayes made history when she won the Best Spoken Word Recording at the Grammys.
What made this knight so memorable? Winning this Grammy made Hayes the first actress to achieve EGOT status.
Winning any award in the performing arts is an esteemed honor; however, achieving an EGOT is the most highly acclaimed accomplishment in the industry.
The term “EGOT” is an acronym for Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony.
Hayes was first introduced to the theatre through her mother. Her first sighting in the theatre was Franz Lehar’s The Merry Widow, causing her to immediately fall in love with the stage.
She would become a constant performer at eight for Lew Fields after her successful audition for the leading role in Old Dutch.
As her career in the arts flourished, Hayes expanded her work beyond the stage.
““Everybody starts at the top, and then has the problem of staying there. Lasting accomplishment, however, is still achieved through a long, slow climb and self-discipline.”
— Helen Hayes
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Hayes had been nominated for nine different Emmy awards in her lifetime, with an overwhelming amount being for either her outstanding performance or the best actress.
Her hard work would pay off when she won Best Actress in 1953.
Grammy
In her lifetime, she had only been nominated for two Grammy Awards. Her most recognizable nomination was for Best Spoken Word Recordings for the Great American Documents during the 19th Annual GRAMMY. Her second nomination was at the 22nd GRAMMY for Best Spoken Word Documentary or Drama Recording, which she unfortunately did not win.
Oscar
Her impeccable performance in the early and late 1900s won her the Best Actress award for The Sin of Madelon Claudet in 1931 and, in 1970, Best Supporting Actress for Airport.
Tony
Hayes would also win Tony’s for plays such as Happy Birthday (Best Actress) in 1947, Time Remembered in 1958.
In 1986, the president at the time, Ronald Reagan, presented Hayes with the President’s Medal of Freedom, and two years later, she was honored with the National Medal of Arts.
In her lifespan, Hayes was featured in a vairtry of films plays and television.
Hayes would peaceful passway after a long, lived age of 92 on Mar 17, 1993.