Roxie Hart is a fictional character, a showgirl accused of murder. She first appeared in the 1926 play Chicago written by reporter Maurine Dallas Watkins. Watkins was inspired by the real-life unrelated 1924 murder trials of Beulah Annan and Belva Gaertner, which she covered for the Chicago Tribune. Annan was the basis for Roxie. Both women were acquitted.
The play made it to Broadway in 1926 and ran for 172 performances. Gaertner attended the Chicago opening. Its adaptations include:
- Chicago, a 1927 silent film, with Phyllis Haver playing Roxie
- Roxie Hart, a 1942 movie starring Ginger Rogers as Roxie
- Chicago, a 1975 stage musical and its various revivals
- Chicago, a 2002 musical film version starring Renée Zellweger as Roxie, Catherine Zeta-Jones as rival Velma Kelly, and Richard Gere as defense attorney Billy Flynn
Performers whove portrayed Roxie Hart include Brooke Shields, Ashlee Simpson, Melanie Griffith, Samantha Harris and Michelle Williams, of Destiny's Child fame. Simpson and Shields have portrayed the character on Broadway and The West End.
Bebe Neuwirth who originally won a Tony Award for the role of Velma Kelly in 1997, eventually portrayed Roxie as well in 2006.
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