Arthur Siegel (December 31, 1923 - September 13, 1994) was an American songwriter. Born on December 31, 1923, in

Lakewood Township, New Jersey Lakewood Township is the most populous township in Ocean County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. A rapidly growing community as of the 2020 U.S. census, the township had a total population of 135,158 representing an increase of 41,415 (+45.5% ...

, he grew up in

Asbury Park, New Jersey Asbury Park () is a beachfront city located on the Jersey Shore in Monmouth County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is part of the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 15,188

. Siegel studied acting at the

American Academy of Dramatic Arts The American Academy of Dramatic Arts (AADA) is a private performing arts conservatory with two locations, one in Manhattan and one in Los Angeles. The academy offers an associate degree in occupational studies and teaches drama and related art ...

and studied music at the

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most el ...

.Staff
"Arthur Siegel, Song Composer And Pianist, 70"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', September 17, 1994. Accessed February 10, 2011. "Mr. Siegel, whose career in show business spanned nearly five decades, was born in Lakewood, N.J., on Dec. 31, 1923, and grew up in Asbury Park, N.J. He came to New York City in the 1930s and studied at the Juilliard School and the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, where he met the entertainer Eddie Cantor's daughter and got his first big break as Cantor's accompanist." Hits he composed included "

Monotonous Monotone refers to a sound, for example music or speech, that has a single unvaried tone. See: monophony. Monotone or monotonicity may also refer to: In economics *Monotone preferences, a property of a consumer's preference ordering. *Monotonici ...

" (written in collaboration with

June Carroll June Carroll (1917 – May 16, 2004) was an American lyricist, singer and actress. Born June Sillman in Detroit, Michigan, Carroll appeared in the Broadway musical ''New Faces of 1952'', introducing the now-standard ''Guess Who I Saw Today'', by ...

, famously performed by

Eartha Kitt Eartha Kitt (born Eartha Mae Keith; January 17, 1927 – December 25, 2008) was an American singer and actress known for her highly distinctive singing style and her 1953 recordings of "C'est si bon" and the Christmas novelty song "Santa Ba ...

), "Penny Candy", "Love is a Simple Thing" and "I Want You to Be the First One to Know". His work was featured prominently in the

Leonard Sillman Leonard Sillman (May 9, 1908 - January 23, 1982) was an American Broadway producer. Born in Detroit, Michigan on May 9, 1908, he was the brother of June Carroll, the brother-in-law of Sidney Carroll and the uncle of Steve Reich and Jonathan Carroll. ...

-produced revues ''

New Faces of 1952 ''New Faces of 1952'' is a musical revue with songs and comedy skits. It ran on Broadway for nearly a year in 1952 and was then made into a motion picture in 1954. It helped launch the careers of several young performers including Paul Lynde, Alic ...

'', ''New Faces of 1956'' and ''

New Faces of 1962 New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

''. In 1962, Siegel collaborated with

Kaye Ballard Kaye Ballard (November 20, 1925 – January 21, 2019) was an American actress, comedian, and singer. Early life Ballard was born Catherine Gloria Balotta in Cleveland, Ohio, one of four children born to Italian immigrant parents, Lena (née Nac ...

on an LP, ''

Peanuts ''Peanuts'' is a print syndication, syndicated daily strip, daily and Sunday strip, Sunday American comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz. The strip's original run extended from 1950 to 2000, continuing in reruns afterward. ' ...

'', on which he played

Charlie Brown Charles "Charlie" Brown is the principal character of the comic strip ''Peanuts'', syndicated in daily and Sunday newspapers in numerous countries all over the world. Depicted as a "lovable loser," Charlie Brown is one of the great American ar ...

and she played Lucy Van Pelt from the album's comic strip namesake by

Charles M. Schulz Charles Monroe "Sparky" Schulz (; November 26, 1922 – February 12, 2000) was an American cartoonist and the creator of the comic strip ''Peanuts'', featuring what are probably his two best-known characters, Charlie Brown and Snoopy. He is wi ...

, dramatizing a series of vignettes drawn from the strip's archive. Siegel released several recordings of himself performing his own music, including 1992's ''Arthur Siegel Sings Arthur Siegel'' and 1995's ''Live at the Ballroom''. allmusic ((( Arthur Siegel > Discography > Main Albums )))/ref> Siegel died at the age of 70 on September 13, 1994, at his home in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

due to

heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, a ...

References

External links

The Arthur Siegel WebsiteArthur Siegel papers, 1938-1994
Music Division, New York Public Library for the Performing Arts. * Arthur Siegel on Allmusic*
Article in ''the New York Times'': "Arthur Siegel's Surprising Songs"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Siegel, Arthur 1923 births 1994 deaths American Academy of Dramatic Arts alumni Juilliard School alumni People from Asbury Park, New Jersey People from Lakewood Township, New Jersey Songwriters from New Jersey 20th-century American musicians