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Gus Kahn

January 25, 2024

Not to be confused with Guz Khan.

Gustav Gerson Kahn (November 6, 1886 – October 8, 1941) was an American lyricist who contributed a number of songs to the Great American Songbook, including "Pretty Baby", "Ain't We Got Fun?", "Carolina in the Morning", "Toot, Toot, Tootsie (Goo' Bye!)", "My Buddy" "I'll See You in My Dreams", "It Had to Be You", "Yes Sir, That's My Baby", "Love Me or Leave Me", "Makin' Whoopee", "My Baby Just Cares for Me", "I'm Through with Love", "Dream a Little Dream of Me" and "You Stepped Out of a Dream".

Gus Kahn
Gus Kahn
Background information
Birth nameGustav Gerson Kahn
Born(1886-11-06)November 6, 1886
Koblenz, German Empire
DiedOctober 8, 1941(1941-10-08) (aged 54)
Beverly Hills, California, U.S.
Occupation(s)Lyricist

Life and career edit

Kahn was born in 1886 in Bruschied, in the Rhine Province of the Kingdom of Prussia, the son of Theresa (Mayer) and Isaac Kahn, a cattle farmer.[1] The Jewish family emigrated to the United States and moved to Chicago in 1890. After graduating from high school, he worked as a clerk in a mail order business before launching one of the most successful and prolific careers from Tin Pan Alley.[2] Kahn married Grace LeBoy in 1916 and they had two children, Donald and Irene.

In his early days, Kahn wrote special material for vaudeville. In 1913 he began a productive partnership with the well-established composer Egbert Van Alstyne, with whom he created several notable hits of the era, including "Memories" and, along with Tony Jackson, "Pretty Baby." Later, he began writing lyrics for composer and bandleader Isham Jones. This partnership led to one of Kahn's best-known works, "I'll See You in My Dreams," which became the title of a 1951 movie based on his life, starring Danny Thomas as Kahn and Doris Day as his wife, Grace LeBoy Kahn.[2]

Throughout the 1920s, Kahn continued to contribute to Broadway scores such as Holka Polka (1925), Kitty's Kisses (1926), Artists and Models (1927), Whoopee! (1928), and Show Girl (1929). He went on to write song lyrics for several movies, primarily for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.[2]

By 1933, Kahn had become a full-time motion picture songwriter, contributing to movies such as Flying Down to Rio, Thanks a Million, Kid Millions, A Day at the Races, Everybody Sing, One Night of Love, Three Smart Girls, Let's Sing Again, San Francisco, Naughty Marietta, and Ziegfeld Girl.[2]

He also collaborated with co-lyricist Ira Gershwin and with some of the finest composers, including Grace LeBoy Kahn (his wife), Richard A. Whiting, Buddy DeSylva, Al Jolson, Raymond Egan, Ted Fio Rito, Ernie Erdman, Neil Moret, Vincent Youmans, George Gershwin, Harry Akst, Harry M. Woods, Edward Eliscu, Victor Schertzinger, Arthur Johnston, Bronisław Kaper, Jerome Kern, Walter Jurmann, Sigmund Romberg, and Harry Warren, though his primary collaborator was Walter Donaldson.[2]

He had a long friendship with Walter Donaldson. Their first collaboration was the song My Buddy in 1922. They went on to compose over one hundred songs together.[3]

Death and legacy edit

Kahn died in Beverly Hills, California, on October 8, 1941, of a heart attack at age 54. He was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California.

His catalog contained some of the greatest collections of songs from the first half of the 20th century, and it is for this reason that he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970, nearly 30 years after his death. He was survived by his son, songwriter and musician Donald Kahn, who died at the age of 89 on April 11, 2008, in Beverly Hills, California. His daughter, Irene, was married to Arthur Marx, the son of Groucho Marx.[4]

Gus Kahn's most famous songs include "My Buddy" (1922) with music by Walter Donaldson; "It Had To Be You" (1924), with music by Isham Jones; and "Makin' Whoopee" (1928), with music by Walter Donaldson. Kahn was also the lyricist for the Ted Healy/Three Stooges short film Beer and Pretzels (1933), with music by Al Goodhart. Kahn has been incorrectly associated with the song "Side by Side", which has words and music by Harry M. Woods.

Kahn's papers are housed at the Great American Songbook Foundation.[5]

Danny Thomas played Kahn opposite Doris Day as Grace LeBoy in the 1951 film I'll See You in my Dreams.

Selected songs edit

Further reading edit

  • Donaldson, Walter and Gus Kahn. Vocal Selections from Whoopee!: A Musical Comedy. S.l., U.S.A.: Macmillan, 1979. OCLC 159410131
  • Ewen, David. American Songwriters: An H.W. Wilson Biographical Dictionary. New York : H.W. Wilson, 1987. ISBN 0-8242-0744-0 OCLC 14357785
  • Furia, Philip. American Song Lyricists, 1920–1960. Detroit : Gale Group, 2002. ISBN 0-7876-6009-4 OCLC 50004668
  • Kahn, Gus. I'll See You in My Dreams. Warner Bros. Publications, 1989. OCLC 650149287
  • Kahn, Gus, Bronislaw Kaper, and Walter Jurmann. To-Morrow Is Another Day. New York: Robbins Music Corp, 1937. OCLC 76656495
  • Whorf, Michael. American Popular Song Lyricists: Oral Histories, 1920s–1960s. Jefferson, NC : McFarland, 2012. ISBN 0-7864-6538-7 OCLC 761369338

References edit

  1. ^ Fisher, James (2000). "Kahn, Gus (1886-1941), lyricist | American National Biography". Anb.org. doi:10.1093/anb/9780198606697.article.1800648. ISBN 978-0-19-860669-7.
  2. ^ a b c d e Colin Larkin, ed. (1997). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Popular Music (Concise ed.). Virgin Books. p. 694. ISBN 1-85227-745-9.
  3. ^ . songwritershalloffame.org. Archived from the original on 2015-06-11. Retrieved 2015-05-03.
  4. ^ "Gus Kahn: The Man Behind the Music". The Center For The Performing Arts. Retrieved 2021-07-29.
  5. ^ "A Great American Songbook Foundation". The Center For The Performing Arts.
  6. ^ a b c d e f Parker, Bernard S. (2007). World War I Sheet Music - Volume 2. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. pp. 479, 549, 575, 590, 646, 772. ISBN 978-0-7864-2799-4.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g Parker, Bernard S. (2007). World War I Sheet Music - Volume 1. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. pp. 76, 161, 164, 182, 250, 280, 311. ISBN 978-0-7864-2798-7.

External links edit

January 25, 2024
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Not to be confused with Guz Khan Gustav Gerson Kahn November 6 1886 October 8 1941 was an American lyricist who contributed a number of songs to the Great American Songbook including Pretty Baby Ain t We Got Fun Carolina in the Morning Toot Toot Tootsie Goo Bye My Buddy I ll See You in My Dreams It Had to Be You Yes Sir That s My Baby Love Me or Leave Me Makin Whoopee My Baby Just Cares for Me I m Through with Love Dream a Little Dream of Me and You Stepped Out of a Dream Gus KahnGus KahnBackground informationBirth nameGustav Gerson KahnBorn 1886 11 06 November 6 1886Koblenz German EmpireDiedOctober 8 1941 1941 10 08 aged 54 Beverly Hills California U S Occupation s Lyricist Contents 1 Life and career 2 Death and legacy 3 Selected songs 4 Further reading 5 References 6 External linksLife and career editKahn was born in 1886 in Bruschied in the Rhine Province of the Kingdom of Prussia the son of Theresa Mayer and Isaac Kahn a cattle farmer 1 The Jewish family emigrated to the United States and moved to Chicago in 1890 After graduating from high school he worked as a clerk in a mail order business before launching one of the most successful and prolific careers from Tin Pan Alley 2 Kahn married Grace LeBoy in 1916 and they had two children Donald and Irene In his early days Kahn wrote special material for vaudeville In 1913 he began a productive partnership with the well established composer Egbert Van Alstyne with whom he created several notable hits of the era including Memories and along with Tony Jackson Pretty Baby Later he began writing lyrics for composer and bandleader Isham Jones This partnership led to one of Kahn s best known works I ll See You in My Dreams which became the title of a 1951 movie based on his life starring Danny Thomas as Kahn and Doris Day as his wife Grace LeBoy Kahn 2 Throughout the 1920s Kahn continued to contribute to Broadway scores such as Holka Polka 1925 Kitty s Kisses 1926 Artists and Models 1927 Whoopee 1928 and Show Girl 1929 He went on to write song lyrics for several movies primarily for Metro Goldwyn Mayer 2 By 1933 Kahn had become a full time motion picture songwriter contributing to movies such as Flying Down to Rio Thanks a Million Kid Millions A Day at the Races Everybody Sing One Night of Love Three Smart Girls Let s Sing Again San Francisco Naughty Marietta and Ziegfeld Girl 2 He also collaborated with co lyricist Ira Gershwin and with some of the finest composers including Grace LeBoy Kahn his wife Richard A Whiting Buddy DeSylva Al Jolson Raymond Egan Ted Fio Rito Ernie Erdman Neil Moret Vincent Youmans George Gershwin Harry Akst Harry M Woods Edward Eliscu Victor Schertzinger Arthur Johnston Bronislaw Kaper Jerome Kern Walter Jurmann Sigmund Romberg and Harry Warren though his primary collaborator was Walter Donaldson 2 He had a long friendship with Walter Donaldson Their first collaboration was the song My Buddy in 1922 They went on to compose over one hundred songs together 3 Death and legacy editKahn died in Beverly Hills California on October 8 1941 of a heart attack at age 54 He was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale California His catalog contained some of the greatest collections of songs from the first half of the 20th century and it is for this reason that he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970 nearly 30 years after his death He was survived by his son songwriter and musician Donald Kahn who died at the age of 89 on April 11 2008 in Beverly Hills California His daughter Irene was married to Arthur Marx the son of Groucho Marx 4 Gus Kahn s most famous songs include My Buddy 1922 with music by Walter Donaldson It Had To Be You 1924 with music by Isham Jones and Makin Whoopee 1928 with music by Walter Donaldson Kahn was also the lyricist for the Ted Healy Three Stooges short film Beer and Pretzels 1933 with music by Al Goodhart Kahn has been incorrectly associated with the song Side by Side which has words and music by Harry M Woods Kahn s papers are housed at the Great American Songbook Foundation 5 Danny Thomas played Kahn opposite Doris Day as Grace LeBoy in the 1951 film I ll See You in my Dreams Selected songs edit I Wish I had a Girl 1907 Everybody Rag with Me 1914 Memories 1915 Pretty Baby 1916 So Long Mother 1917 m Egbert Van Alstyne 6 Cherry Blossom 1917 m Harry Ramond 7 On the Road to Home Sweet Home 1917 m Egbert Van Alstyne 6 Scouting in the U S A 1917 m Edith Goodland Bartlett 6 For the Boys Over There 1918 m Egbert Van Alstyne 7 What Are You Going to Do to Help the Boys 1918 m Egbert Van Alstyne 6 For Your Boy and My Boy 1918 m Egbert Van Alstyne 7 Give a Little Credit to the Navy 1918 m Albert Gumble 7 It Might as Well Be You 1918 L Egbert Van Alstyne 7 Put Your Hands in your Pocket and Give Give Give 1918 m Egbert Van Alstyne 6 Tell the Folks in Dixie I ll Be Back There Some Day 1918 m Egbert Van Alstyne 6 Your Eyes Have Told Me So 1919 I Can t Get Along Without You 1919 m Robert Van Alstyne 7 I ll Wait for You 1919 m Egbert Van Alstyne 7 Ain t We Got Fun 1921 Carolina in the Morning 1922 Toot Toot Tootsie Goo Bye 1922 My Buddy 1922 On the Alamo 1922 Swingin Down the Lane 1923 Charley My Boy 1924 I ll See You in My Dreams 1924 It Had to Be You 1924 When You and I Were Seventeen 1924 Sometime 1925 I Wonder Where My Baby Is Tonight 1925 Yes Sir That s My Baby 1925 Ukulele Lady 1925 Let s Talk About My Sweetie 1926 m Walter Donaldson Persian Rug 1927 Chlo e 1927 Love Me or Leave Me 1928 Makin Whoopee 1928 Liza All the Clouds ll Roll Away w Ira Gershwin 1929 Goofus 1930 My Baby Just Cares for Me 1930 I m Through with Love 1931 Dream a Little Dream of Me 1931 Guilty 1931 Thanks for the Pines 1931 Carioca 1934 San Francisco or Theme from San Francisco Music Bronislaw Kaper and Walter Jurmann San Francisco 1936 film My Heart Is Singing Music Bronislaw Kaper and Walter Jurmann Three Smart Girls 1936 Someone to Care for Me Music Bronislaw Kaper and Walter Jurmann Three Smart Girls 1936 The Show Must Go On Music Bronislaw Kaper and Walter Jurmann Three Smart Girls 1936 Waltzing in the Clouds 1940 You Stepped Out of a Dream 1940 Further reading editDonaldson Walter and Gus Kahn Vocal Selections from Whoopee A Musical Comedy S l U S A Macmillan 1979 OCLC 159410131 Ewen David American Songwriters An H W Wilson Biographical Dictionary New York H W Wilson 1987 ISBN 0 8242 0744 0 OCLC 14357785 Furia Philip American Song Lyricists 1920 1960 Detroit Gale Group 2002 ISBN 0 7876 6009 4 OCLC 50004668 Kahn Gus I ll See You in My Dreams Warner Bros Publications 1989 OCLC 650149287 Kahn Gus Bronislaw Kaper and Walter Jurmann To Morrow Is Another Day New York Robbins Music Corp 1937 OCLC 76656495 Whorf Michael American Popular Song Lyricists Oral Histories 1920s 1960s Jefferson NC McFarland 2012 ISBN 0 7864 6538 7 OCLC 761369338References edit Fisher James 2000 Kahn Gus 1886 1941 lyricist American National Biography Anb org doi 10 1093 anb 9780198606697 article 1800648 ISBN 978 0 19 860669 7 a b c d e Colin Larkin ed 1997 The Virgin Encyclopedia of Popular Music Concise ed Virgin Books p 694 ISBN 1 85227 745 9 Songwriters Hall of Fame Walter Donaldson Biography songwritershalloffame org Archived from the original on 2015 06 11 Retrieved 2015 05 03 Gus Kahn The Man Behind the Music The Center For The Performing Arts Retrieved 2021 07 29 A Great American Songbook Foundation The Center For The Performing Arts a b c d e f Parker Bernard S 2007 World War I Sheet Music Volume 2 Jefferson North Carolina McFarland amp Company pp 479 549 575 590 646 772 ISBN 978 0 7864 2799 4 a b c d e f g Parker Bernard S 2007 World War I Sheet Music Volume 1 Jefferson North Carolina McFarland amp Company pp 76 161 164 182 250 280 311 ISBN 978 0 7864 2798 7 External links editGus Kahn at the Internet Broadway Database nbsp Gus Kahn at IMDb Gus Kahn at the Songwriters Hall of Fame Gus Kahn at Jazz Standards Archived 2010 11 23 at the Wayback Machine Gus Kahn Interview NAMM Oral History Library 2001 Gus Kahn recordings at the Discography of American Historical Recordings Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Gus Kahn amp oldid 1191279932, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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