George M. Cohan.

Born in Providence, Rhode Island on July 3, 1878, George Michael Cohan was the son of vaudeville performers Jerry and Helen Cohan. He joined the family act as a child, learning singing, dancing, and comedy on the vaudeville circuit. This early experience made the stage an inevitable part of his career.

Cohan made his Broadway debut in the early 1900s and quickly became a dominant figure, writing and starring in shows like Little Johnny Jones 1904. He composed the World War I song Over There in 1917, which became an anthem for American troops. In 1932, he starred in the film The Phantom President, playing dual roles as Theodore K. Blair and Peter Varney. He also appeared in the 1917 adaptation of his play Seven Keys to Baldpate. In 1936, he was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal for his lifetime contributions to American music and theater.

Cohan married Ethel Levey in 1899; they had one daughter, Georgette, before divorcing in 1907. That same year he married Agnes Mary Nolan, with whom he had three children: Mary, Helen, and George Jr. His daughter Helen later married and had children, and his great-granddaughter is actress Jennifer Ross. Cohan’s sister-in-law was Alice Nolan, wife of producer Sam Harris.

Cohan’s statue on Broadway, erected in 1959, honors his contributions to American theater. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970 and the Irish American Hall of Fame in 2012. A 1978 US postage stamp commemorated his 100th birthday. He is best remembered for his patriotic anthem Over There and as the subject of the 1942 film Yankee Doodle Dandy, for which James Cagney won an Oscar portraying him.