John Lithgow
Theatrical, big-band energy that treats children's music with Broadway sophistication. Playful swing and storytelling for a joyful family morning.
Theatrical, big-band energy that treats children's music with Broadway sophistication. Playful swing and storytelling for a joyful family morning.
John Lithgow brings the high-wire energy of a Broadway stage directly into the living room. His music isn't the typical stripped-back acoustic fare found in the genre; instead, it is lushly orchestrated, leaning heavily into the Great American Songbook and mid-century swing. It sounds like a technicolor variety show from the 1950s, complete with bright brass sections, jaunty piano runs, and a sense of grand occasion.
What makes Lithgow distinctive is his refusal to talk down to his audience. He utilizes his immense range as a classically trained actor to inhabit characters, using elastic vocal inflections and impeccable comedic timing. His baritone is warm and authoritative, yet capable of sudden, hilarious shifts into falsetto or gravelly character voices that keep listeners of all ages engaged.
Start with 'Singin' in the Bathtub' for a masterclass in how to make old-school jazz standards feel fresh and funny. It is the perfect entry point for families who want music that is sophisticated enough for the adults to enjoy while being silly enough to captivate a toddler's imagination.
John Arthur Lithgow ( LITH-goh; born October 19, 1945) is an American actor. He studied at Harvard University and the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art before becoming known for his diverse work on stage and screen. He has received numerous accolades including seven Emmy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, a Laurence Olivier Award, and two Tony Awards, as well as nominations for two Academy Awards, a British Academy Film Award, four Grammy Awards, and four Screen Actors Guild Awards. Lithgow has won two Tony Awards, his first for Best Featured Actor in a Play for his Broadway debut in The Changing Room (1972) and his second for Best Actor in a Musical for Sweet Smell of Success (2002). He was Tony-nominated for Requiem for a Heavyweight (1985), M. Butterfly (1988), and Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (2005). He has appeared on Broadway in The Columnist (2012), A Delicate Balance (2014), and Hillary and Clinton (2019). In the West End, he portrayed Roald Dahl in the play Giant (2024), for which he won the 2025 Laurence Olivier Best Actor Award. Lithgow starred as Dick Solomon in the NBC sitcom 3rd Rock from the Sun (1996–2001), winning three Primetime Emmy Awards for Best Actor in a Comedy Series. He received further Emmy Awards for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series playing Arthur Mitchell in the drama Dexter (2009) and for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for his portrayal of Winston Churchill in the Netflix drama The Crown (2016–2019). He also starred in the HBO drama series Perry Mason (2020) and the FX thriller series The Old Man (2022). In film, Lithgow has received two nominations for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, for his roles as a transgender ex-football player in The World According to Garp (1982) and as a lonely banker in Terms of Endearment (1983). He also acted in All That Jazz (1979), Blow Out (1981), Footloose (1984), The Manhattan Project (1986), Harry and the Hendersons (1987), A Civil Action (1998), Shrek (2001), Kinsey (2004), Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011), Love Is Strange (2014), Interstellar (2014), Late Night (2019), Bombshell (2019), Killers of the Flower Moon (2023), and Conclave (2024).
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