fbpx
Wikipedia

Richard A. Whiting

May 02, 2023

For other people with the same name, see Richard Whiting.
Not to be confused with politician Richard H. Whiting, who also lived in Peoria, Illinois.

Richard Armstrong Whiting (November 12, 1891 – February 19, 1938)[1] was an American composer of popular songs, including the standards "Hooray for Hollywood", "Ain't We Got Fun?" and "On the Good Ship Lollipop". He also wrote lyrics occasionally, and film scores most notably for the standard "She's Funny That Way".

Richard A. Whiting
Whiting c. mid-1930s
Background information
Birth nameRichard Armstrong Whiting
Born(1891-11-12)November 12, 1891
Peoria, Illinois, U.S.
DiedFebruary 19, 1938(1938-02-19) (aged 46)
Beverly Hills, California, U.S.
Occupation(s)Composer, songwriter
Years active1910–1938

He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1936 for "When Did You Leave Heaven" from the movie Sing, Baby Sing.

Biography

Richard Whiting was born in Peoria, Illinois, United States,[2] into a musical family. His father, Frank Whiting, was a real estate agent and gifted violinist; his mother Blossom was a piano teacher. Together they instilled a love of music in their son and worked towards nurturing his natural gift of piano playing. He attended the Harvard Military School in Los Angeles. Upon his graduation, Whiting started a vaudeville act with his college friend Marshall Neilan. The pair briefly toured the United States writing songs, singing, and playing the piano; although neither one had the stage presence or singing talent to become full-time performers. They broke up the duo and went their separate ways: Neilan to Hollywood, where he would go on to be a successful film director and actor, and Whiting to Detroit to try to jump-start a career as a professional songwriter. In 1913, Whiting began his career as a song plugger for Jerome H. Remick publishing company. Within a year he was the manager of the Detroit office, being paid US$25 per week. As an occasional talent scout, Whiting nurtured the careers of several songwriters from the day, most notably George Gershwin; Whiting heard Gershwin playing one day and gave him a job as a song plugger for Remick company. This act of kindness resulted in a lifelong friendship between the two powerhouse composers. To supplement his income at the time, Whiting worked with a local hotel's Hawaiian band, playing piano in light blackface, earning him an extra $10 a week.

In 1914, Whiting had his first two hit songs: "I Wonder Where My Lovin' Man Has Gone" and "It's Tulip Time in Holland."[2] The latter song became a massive hit, selling over a million copies. Whiting received none of the royalties, however, having sold off the publishing rights to Remick in exchange for a Steinway grand piano.[2] During his time at Remick Whiting had a substantial output, mostly with former bank-clerk Ray Egan, including 1918's, "Till We Meet Again".[2] The song quickly became the largest sheet music seller of all time, even today: at last count the song was said to have sold over 11 million copies.[citation needed] Other hit songs written by Whiting during his time at Remick include "Where the Black-Eyed Susans Grow" (1917), "The Japanese Sandman" (1920), "Bimini Bay" (1921, lyrics by Egan and Gus Kahn), "Ain't We Got Fun?" (1921, lyrics by Egan and Kahn) and "Ukulele Lady" (1925, lyrics by Kahn).[2]

In 1929, Whiting moved to Hollywood, where there were more opportunities for songwriters during the Depression. In Hollywood he wrote a number of film scores and classic songs. With Johnny Mercer he wrote the theme song of Tinseltown, "Hooray for Hollywood", shortly before his death.[2] During his career, Whiting collaborated with such songwriters as BG DeSylva, Johnny Mercer, Neil Moret, Leo Robin, Ralph Rainger, Gus Kahn, Oscar Hammerstein II, Haven Gillespie, Seymour Simons, Nacio Herb Brown, Harry Akst, Walter Donaldson, Ray Egan, and Sidney Clare, to produce a number of hits (listed below).[2] He also wrote a number of scores for Broadway plays.[2]

In the film, Transatlantic Merry-Go-Round (1932), a song performed by The Boswell Sisters, titled "Rock and Roll", written by Richard A. Whiting and Sidney Clare, is sometimes credited as the first use of that term.

Whiting died from a heart attack in 1938 at the age of 46, at the height of his career.[2] He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame as part of the inaugural class in 1970. A tribute to Whiting's music, along with a medley of his best-known songs, formed part of the 1980 Broadway musical A Day in Hollywood / A Night in the Ukraine. His Steinway grand piano was donated to the Great American Songbook Foundation by his granddaughter Debbi and can be seen on display.

Whiting was married to the former Eleanor Youngblood, a manager whose clients included Sophie Tucker. He was the father of singer/actress Margaret Whiting and actress Barbara Whiting, and the grandson of Rep. Richard H. Whiting.

Film scores

Broadway show scores

  • Toot Sweet
  • George White's Scandals of 1919
  • Take a Chance which featured two major hits with music by Whiting "You're an Old Smoothie," and "Eadie Was a Lady"

Selected songs

Free for All

Original Music by Richard A. Whiting, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II

Act 1 consists of

  • "I Love Him, the Rat" sung by Anita Allen and Joe Butler (Perpetual Student at Leland Stanford)
  • "Free For All" sung by Michael Byrne (a Radical Poet) and The Gang
  • "The Girl Next Door" sung by Anita Allen and Steve Potter, Jr. (Son of Stephen, Sr.)
  • "Living in Sin" sung by Gracie Maynard, Joan Summer (Youngest of the Gang), Joe Butler (Perpetual Student at Leland Stanford) and Andy Bradford
  • "Just Eighteen" sung by Joan Summer (Youngest of the Gang) and Andy Bradford
  • "Not That I Care" sung by Anita Allen and Steve Potter, Jr. (Son of Stephen, Sr.)
  • "Slumber Song" Sung by Marishka Tarasov and Michael Byrne (a Radical Poet)

Act 2 consists of

  • "When Your Boy Becomes a Man" sung by Silver Dollar Kate and Anita Allen
  • "Tonight" sung by Marishka Tarasov and Anita Allen
  • "Nevada Moonlight" sung by Joe Butler (Perpetual Student at Leland Stanford), Gracie Maynard and Ensemble

Richard Whiting was also referenced in the 1980 Broadway show a Day in Hollywood/ a Night in the Ukraine where a medley of his songs are performed in the first act. One of the actors comically portrays him during the song It All Comes Out of the Piano.[citation needed]

Hit songs

Recordings

Frank Sinatra recorded Whiting's "Too Marvelous for Words" on his album Songs for Swingin' Lovers!. Sinatra also recorded Whiting's "She's Funny That Way" on his album Nice 'n' Easy, and other songs such as "My Ideal".

Tony Bennett recorded many of Whiting's songs, such as "My Ideal" on his album Here's to the Ladies, "True Blue Lou" and "She's Funny That Way."

Margaret Whiting (his daughter) recorded and made famous several Whiting hits including "Guilty", "Too Marvelous for Words" and "Ain't We Got Fun?"

Other notable artists to record Whiting songs:

Modern day usage

In 2006, the film A Good Year starring Russell Crowe and Marion Cotillard featured the song "Breezin' Along with the Breeze" with music by Whiting and lyrics by Haven Gillespie and Seymour Simons

In 2009, Renee Olstead used the song "Ain't We Got Fun" written by Whiting, Raymond B. Egan and Gus Kahn for her album Skylark

In 2010, Boardwalk Empire used the music from Whiting's "The Japanese Sandman" in the first five episodes of the show. A version with lyrics by Raymond B. Egan appeared in the show on October 24, 2010.

In 2010, Enrique Iglesias used a segment of "On the Good Ship Lollipop" written by Whiting and Sidney Clare for Bright Eyes in his YouTube video for the song "Tonight (I'm Lovin' You)"

In 2011, Diet Coke used Whiting's music to the song "Hooray for Hollywood" in their Oscar commercial which played nationwide in movie theaters.

References

  1. ^ "Richard Whiting, Writer of Popular Songs, Dies at 46". The Milwaukee Sentinel. February 19, 1938. Retrieved September 13, 2015.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa Colin Larkin, ed. (1992). The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 2676. ISBN 0-85112-939-0.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Parker, Bernard S. (2007). World War I Sheet Music (Volume 1). Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. pp. 59, 77, 117, 127, 209, 263, 277. ISBN 978-0-7864-2798-7.
  4. ^ "Horses / words and music by Byron Gay and Richard A. Whiting. [music] / – Version details – Trove". Trove.nla.gov.au. Retrieved December 27, 2013.

External links

 
Wikisource has original works by or about:
Richard A. Whiting

May 02, 2023
richard, whiting, other, people, with, same, name, richard, whiting, confused, with, politician, richard, whiting, also, lived, peoria, illinois, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations. For other people with the same name see Richard Whiting Not to be confused with politician Richard H Whiting who also lived in Peoria Illinois This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Richard A Whiting news newspapers books scholar JSTOR August 2020 Learn how and when to remove this template message Richard Armstrong Whiting November 12 1891 February 19 1938 1 was an American composer of popular songs including the standards Hooray for Hollywood Ain t We Got Fun and On the Good Ship Lollipop He also wrote lyrics occasionally and film scores most notably for the standard She s Funny That Way Richard A WhitingWhiting c mid 1930sBackground informationBirth nameRichard Armstrong WhitingBorn 1891 11 12 November 12 1891Peoria Illinois U S DiedFebruary 19 1938 1938 02 19 aged 46 Beverly Hills California U S Occupation s Composer songwriterYears active1910 1938 He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1936 for When Did You Leave Heaven from the movie Sing Baby Sing Contents 1 Biography 2 Film scores 3 Broadway show scores 4 Selected songs 4 1 Free for All 5 Hit songs 6 Recordings 7 Modern day usage 8 References 9 External linksBiography EditRichard Whiting was born in Peoria Illinois United States 2 into a musical family His father Frank Whiting was a real estate agent and gifted violinist his mother Blossom was a piano teacher Together they instilled a love of music in their son and worked towards nurturing his natural gift of piano playing He attended the Harvard Military School in Los Angeles Upon his graduation Whiting started a vaudeville act with his college friend Marshall Neilan The pair briefly toured the United States writing songs singing and playing the piano although neither one had the stage presence or singing talent to become full time performers They broke up the duo and went their separate ways Neilan to Hollywood where he would go on to be a successful film director and actor and Whiting to Detroit to try to jump start a career as a professional songwriter In 1913 Whiting began his career as a song plugger for Jerome H Remick publishing company Within a year he was the manager of the Detroit office being paid US 25 per week As an occasional talent scout Whiting nurtured the careers of several songwriters from the day most notably George Gershwin Whiting heard Gershwin playing one day and gave him a job as a song plugger for Remick company This act of kindness resulted in a lifelong friendship between the two powerhouse composers To supplement his income at the time Whiting worked with a local hotel s Hawaiian band playing piano in light blackface earning him an extra 10 a week In 1914 Whiting had his first two hit songs I Wonder Where My Lovin Man Has Gone and It s Tulip Time in Holland 2 The latter song became a massive hit selling over a million copies Whiting received none of the royalties however having sold off the publishing rights to Remick in exchange for a Steinway grand piano 2 During his time at Remick Whiting had a substantial output mostly with former bank clerk Ray Egan including 1918 s Till We Meet Again 2 The song quickly became the largest sheet music seller of all time even today at last count the song was said to have sold over 11 million copies citation needed Other hit songs written by Whiting during his time at Remick include Where the Black Eyed Susans Grow 1917 The Japanese Sandman 1920 Bimini Bay 1921 lyrics by Egan and Gus Kahn Ain t We Got Fun 1921 lyrics by Egan and Kahn and Ukulele Lady 1925 lyrics by Kahn 2 In 1929 Whiting moved to Hollywood where there were more opportunities for songwriters during the Depression In Hollywood he wrote a number of film scores and classic songs With Johnny Mercer he wrote the theme song of Tinseltown Hooray for Hollywood shortly before his death 2 During his career Whiting collaborated with such songwriters as BG DeSylva Johnny Mercer Neil Moret Leo Robin Ralph Rainger Gus Kahn Oscar Hammerstein II Haven Gillespie Seymour Simons Nacio Herb Brown Harry Akst Walter Donaldson Ray Egan and Sidney Clare to produce a number of hits listed below 2 He also wrote a number of scores for Broadway plays 2 In the film Transatlantic Merry Go Round 1932 a song performed by The Boswell Sisters titled Rock and Roll written by Richard A Whiting and Sidney Clare is sometimes credited as the first use of that term Whiting died from a heart attack in 1938 at the age of 46 at the height of his career 2 He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame as part of the inaugural class in 1970 A tribute to Whiting s music along with a medley of his best known songs formed part of the 1980 Broadway musical A Day in Hollywood A Night in the Ukraine His Steinway grand piano was donated to the Great American Songbook Foundation by his granddaughter Debbi and can be seen on display Whiting was married to the former Eleanor Youngblood a manager whose clients included Sophie Tucker He was the father of singer actress Margaret Whiting and actress Barbara Whiting and the grandson of Rep Richard H Whiting Film scores EditOur Dancing Daughters 1928 Close Harmony 1929 Innocents of Paris 1929 The Dance of Life 1929 Why Bring That Up 1929 Sweetie 1929 Pointed Heels 1929 Monte Carlo 1930 Safety in Numbers 1930 Let s Go Native 1930 Follow Thru 1930 Paramount on Parade 1930 Playboy of Paris 1930 Monkey Business 1931 Transatlantic Merry Go Round 1932 One Hour with You 1932 Red Headed Woman 1932 Blonde Venus 1932 Handle With Care 1932 Adorable 1933 My Weakness 1933 She Learned About Sailors 1934 365 Nights in Hollywood 1934 Bottoms Up 1934 Bright Eyes 1934 Coronado 1935 Four Hours to Kill 1935 The Crusades 1935 The Big Broadcast of 1936 1936 Anything Goes 1936 Rhythm on the Range 1936 Sing Baby Sing 1936 Varsity Show 1937 Ready Willing and Able 1937 Hollywood Hotel 1937 Cowboy from Brooklyn 1938 Broadway show scores EditToot Sweet George White s Scandals of 1919 Take a Chance which featured two major hits with music by Whiting You re an Old Smoothie and Eadie Was a Lady Selected songs Edit1916 Coaling Up in Colon Town L Raymond Egan 3 1917 Bravest Heart of All L Raymond Egan 3 1917 I Wonder Where My Buddies Are To Night L Raymond Egan and Billy Rose 3 1918 Dress Up Your Dollars in Khaki And Help Win Democracy s Fight L Lister R Alwood 3 1918 I ll Love You More for Losing You a While L Raymond Egan 3 1919 Eyes of the Army L Raymond Egan 3 1919 Hand in Hand Again L Raymond Egan 3 Free for All Edit Original Music by Richard A Whiting lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein IIAct 1 consists of I Love Him the Rat sung by Anita Allen and Joe Butler Perpetual Student at Leland Stanford Free For All sung by Michael Byrne a Radical Poet and The Gang The Girl Next Door sung by Anita Allen and Steve Potter Jr Son of Stephen Sr Living in Sin sung by Gracie Maynard Joan Summer Youngest of the Gang Joe Butler Perpetual Student at Leland Stanford and Andy Bradford Just Eighteen sung by Joan Summer Youngest of the Gang and Andy Bradford Not That I Care sung by Anita Allen and Steve Potter Jr Son of Stephen Sr Slumber Song Sung by Marishka Tarasov and Michael Byrne a Radical Poet Act 2 consists of When Your Boy Becomes a Man sung by Silver Dollar Kate and Anita Allen Tonight sung by Marishka Tarasov and Anita Allen Nevada Moonlight sung by Joe Butler Perpetual Student at Leland Stanford Gracie Maynard and EnsembleRichard Whiting was also referenced in the 1980 Broadway show a Day in Hollywood a Night in the Ukraine where a medley of his songs are performed in the first act One of the actors comically portrays him during the song It All Comes Out of the Piano citation needed Hit songs Edit Ain t We Got Fun 2 Beyond the Blue Horizon music by Whiting and W Franke Harling words by Leo Robin 2 Breezin Along with the Breeze 2 Eadie Was a Lady music by Whiting and Nacio Herb Brown 2 Guilty music by Whiting and Harry Akst words by Gus Kahn Have You Got Any Castles Baby Honey 2 Hooray for Hollywood 2 Horses Byron Gay Richard A Whiting 4 It s Tulip Time in Holland 2 Love Is on the Air Tonight Miss Brown to You 2 My Future Just Passed My Ideal music by Whiting and Newell Chase words by Leo Robin 2 On the Good Ship Lollipop 2 Ride Tenderfoot Ride Sentimental and Melancholy words by Johnny Mercer She s Funny That Way words only music by Neil Moret 2 Silhouetted in the Moonlight Sleepy Time Gal Music by Ange Lorenzo amp Richard Whiting lyrics by Joseph R Alden amp Raymond B Egan 2 The Japanese Sandman 2 They Made It Twice as Nice as Paradise Till We Meet Again 2 Too Marvelous for Words words by Johnny Mercer 2 When Did You Leave Heaven Where the Black Eyed Susans Grow 2 Where the Morning Glories Grow 2 You re an Old Smoothie You ve Got Something There Ukulele Lady 2 Recordings EditFrank Sinatra recorded Whiting s Too Marvelous for Words on his album Songs for Swingin Lovers Sinatra also recorded Whiting s She s Funny That Way on his album Nice n Easy and other songs such as My Ideal Tony Bennett recorded many of Whiting s songs such as My Ideal on his album Here s to the Ladies True Blue Lou and She s Funny That Way Margaret Whiting his daughter recorded and made famous several Whiting hits including Guilty Too Marvelous for Words and Ain t We Got Fun Other notable artists to record Whiting songs Louis Armstrong Tony Bennett Chet Baker Josephine Baker Nora Bayes The Boswell Sisters Al Bowlly Dave Brubeck Henry Burr Cab Calloway Cher Shirley Horn Maurice Chevalier Eric Clapton Rosemary Clooney Nat King Cole John Coltrane Perry Como Ray Conniff Bing Crosby Doris Day Bobby Darin Vaughn De Leath Kenny Dorham Tommy Dorsey Eddy Duchin Bob Dylan Eliane Elias Ruth Etting Alice Faye Michael Feinstein Ella Fitzgerald Helen Forrest Judy Garland George Gershwin Stan Getz Benny Goodman Eydie Gorme Annette Hanshaw Coleman Hawkins Billie Holiday Bob Hope J J Johnson Al Jolson Isham Jones Dave Koz Diana Krall Frances Langford Abbe Lane Peggy Lee Liberace Jeanette MacDonald Fred MacMurray Wynton Marsalis Dean Martin Mary Martin Tony Martin Carmen McRae Ethel Merman Bette Midler Glenn Miller Wendy Moten Michael Nesmith Anita O Day Renee Olstead Joe Pass Oscar Peterson Dick Powell Diana Ross Art Tatum Shirley Temple Artie Shaw Bobby Short Frank Sinatra Jo Stafford Kay Starr Rod Stewart Tiny Tim Rudy Vallee Fats Waller Fred Waring Ian Whitcomb Paul Whiteman Margaret Whiting Andy Williams Joe Williams Carol Woods Lester YoungModern day usage EditIn 2006 the film A Good Year starring Russell Crowe and Marion Cotillard featured the song Breezin Along with the Breeze with music by Whiting and lyrics by Haven Gillespie and Seymour SimonsIn 2009 Renee Olstead used the song Ain t We Got Fun written by Whiting Raymond B Egan and Gus Kahn for her album SkylarkIn 2010 Boardwalk Empire used the music from Whiting s The Japanese Sandman in the first five episodes of the show A version with lyrics by Raymond B Egan appeared in the show on October 24 2010 In 2010 Enrique Iglesias used a segment of On the Good Ship Lollipop written by Whiting and Sidney Clare for Bright Eyes in his YouTube video for the song Tonight I m Lovin You In 2011 Diet Coke used Whiting s music to the song Hooray for Hollywood in their Oscar commercial which played nationwide in movie theaters References Edit Richard Whiting Writer of Popular Songs Dies at 46 The Milwaukee Sentinel February 19 1938 Retrieved September 13 2015 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa Colin Larkin ed 1992 The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music First ed Guinness Publishing p 2676 ISBN 0 85112 939 0 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 59 77 117 127 209 263 277 ISBN 978 0 7864 2798 7 Horses words and music by Byron Gay and Richard A Whiting music Version details Trove Trove nla gov au Retrieved December 27 2013 External links Edit Wikisource has original works by or about Richard A Whiting Richard A Whiting at the Songwriters Hall of Fame Big Bands Database page on Whiting Richard A Whiting at IMDb Sheet music for Till We Meet Again Jerome H Remick amp Co 1918 Richard Armstrong Whiting at Find a Grave Free scores by Richard A Whiting at the International Music Score Library Project IMSLP Richard A Whiting recordings at the Discography of American Historical Recordings Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Richard A Whiting amp oldid 1142504657, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

article

, read, download, free, free download, mp3, video, mp4, 3gp, jpg, jpeg, gif, png, picture, music, song, movie, book, game, games.