Charles Strouse

Charles Strouse (June 7, 1928 — May 15, 2025) was an American composer and lyricist, best known for Broadway hits as Bye Bye Birdie, Applause and Annie, films including Bonnie and Clyde (1967), The Night They Raided Minsky’s (1968), and All Dogs Go to Heaven (1989), and for the TV series All in the Family (1971–79).

Strouse was born in New York City, the son of Ethel (Newman) and Ira Strouse. After graduating from the Eastman School of Music in 1947, he received two scholarships to Tanglewood, where he studied under composer Aaron Copland. Subsequently, Copland arranged for Strouse to get a scholarship with legendary teacher, Nadia Boulanger, in Paris.

Strouse met songwriting partner, lyricist Lee Adams, at a party in 1949, and the duo began a longtime collaboration starting with writing songs for summer resorts in the Adirondacks. Strouse and Adams contributed material to numerous Off-Broadway musical revues, including Catch a Star, Shoestring Revue, The Littlest Revue and Kaleidoscope, and wrote specialty material for Kaye Ballard, Carol Burnett, Jane Morgan and Dick Shawn.