Composer/actor Albert Hague is best known as the white-bearded Professor Shorofsky, the succinct music teacher in the 1980 MGM/United Artists movie Fame. He reprised the role on the same-named television series that aired on January 7, 1982, through August 4, 1983, on NBC-TV. Becoming a first-run syndication series, the show ran for four seasons from 1983 to 1987 and was a huge hit in Europe. His real-life experiences gave the role a special authenticity. Hague attended the Royal Conservatory in Rome and the College of Music of the University of Cincinnati, graduating with a B.A. degree in music in 1942. Born October 13, 1920, in Berlin, Germany, at the age of 18, Hague escaped Nazi Germany and journeyed to America. Settling in Cincinnati, OH, he became a boogie-woogie pianist. After serving in World War II, he moved to New York City and began playing in Spanish orchestras. Later becoming a successful Broadway composer, Hague won a 1959 Tony Award for the score of the Broadway musical Redhead. His other credits include Plain and Fancy, which spawned the standard "Young and Foolish." New York casting director Howard Feuer called and asked Hague if he'd like to audition for a part in Fame, even though Hague had never acted before. He also co-wrote songs on the soundtrack of the CBS-TV special How the Grinch Stole Christmas and various soundtracks from the Fame TV series issued by RCA Records during the '80s. With his wife, Renée Orin, he recorded the 1997 CD Still Young and Foolish.