John Legend, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Tim Rice added to list of EGOT winners
John Legend, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice all added their names to an exclusive list of Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony winners -- known colloquially as an EGOT -- on Sunday night.
The three earned the quadruple honor in the same award category at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards when "Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert" won for Outstanding Variety Special (Live). Legend was a producer on the show, while Webber and Rice -- who wrote the original 1970 Broadway musical -- won as composer and lyricist, respectively.
They became just the 13th, 14th and 15th people to win all four awards all-time.
"Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert" aired on NBC in April and featured Legend, Alice Cooper, Sara Bareilles and Brandon Victor Dixon among the performers.
Legend is the first black man to win an EGOT, though Whoopi Goldberg became the first black person to win an EGOT in 2002, when she won an Emmy.
The music superstar celebrated his EGOT win on Instagram, sharing a photo of the three new winners Sunday night.
"Before tonight, only 12 people had won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony in competitive categories," Legend wrote. "Sirs Andrew Lloyd Webber, Tim Rice and I joined that group when we won an Emmy for our production of their legendary show Jesus Christ Superstar. So happy to be part of this team. So honored they trusted me to play Jesus Christ. So amazed to be in such rarefied air."
Legend spoke to "Good Morning America" in July, after nominations were announced, about the possibility of adding his name to the list of legendary performers.
"It feels good to be on the brink [of that honor]," he said. "Even if it doesn't happen this year, if we do more on TV, it could happen another time, but this is probably the best shot I'll have for awhile. My fingers are crossed and if it happens, I'm very excited about the possibility."
Legend's wife, model Chrissy Teigen, celebrated her husband's honor on Twitter as well.
Both Legend and songwriter Robert Lopez, the most recent EGOT winner in 2014, were 39 at the time they won. Lopez is still technically the youngest-ever winner, as he was 39 years, 6 months, 3 days old when he won. Legend was 39 years, 8 months and 13 days old.
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Webber is 70 years old and Rice is 73 years old.
British actor John Gielgud is the oldest to win the award, as he was 87 when he completed the quad in 1991, nine years before his death.
Richard Rodgers, Helen Hayes, Rita Moreno, Gielgud, Audrey Hepburn, Marvin Hamlisch, Jonathan Tunick, Mel Brooks, Mike Nichols, Goldberg, Scott Rudin and Lopez are the first dozen EGOT winners.
Lopez has actually won each award at least two times.
