Robert Saul Musel (13 August 1909 – 8 September 1999), sometimes credited as Bob Musel, was an American journalist and lyricist, who was based in London for much of his life. As well as covering European stories for the
United Press
United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th c ...
news agency for several decades, becoming "celebrated in his profession for the quality of his writing and the breadth of his experience," he wrote the lyrics to several successful popular songs.
Biography
Born in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, he joined
United Press
United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th c ...
at the age of 15, and worked for the company for 58 years. In his early years he covered stories on
Broadway
Broadway may refer to:
Theatre
* Broadway Theatre (disambiguation)
* Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
** Broadway (Manhattan), the street
**Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
, and in 1927, when based in
Trenton, New Jersey
Trenton is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. It was the capital of the United States from November 1 to December 24, 1784.kidnapping and death of
Charles Lindbergh
Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, military officer, author, inventor, and activist. On May 20–21, 1927, Lindbergh made the first nonstop flight from New York City to Paris, a distance o ...
's son. Musel claimed to have been the inspiration for a character in the play ''Hold the Front Page'' by
Ben Hecht
Ben Hecht (; February 28, 1894 – April 18, 1964) was an American screenwriter, director, producer, playwright, journalist, and novelist. A successful journalist in his youth, he went on to write 35 books and some of the most enjoyed screenplay ...
. Musel also worked for a while as a scriptwriter in
Hollywood
Hollywood usually refers to:
* Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California
* Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States
Hollywood may also refer to:
Places United States
* Hollywood District (disambiguation)
* Hollywood, ...
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
he was assigned to the US Ninth Air Force, and stayed in London after the end of the war as the office's senior editor. In 1947, " Tell Me Marianne", Musel's adaptation of the 1924 tango "A media luz", topped the UK sheet music charts. He reported on the
coronation of Queen Elizabeth II
The coronation of Elizabeth II took place on 2 June 1953 at Westminster Abbey in London. She acceded to the throne at the age of 25 upon the death of her father, George VI, on 6 February 1952, being proclaimed queen by her privy and executive ...
, writing: "Golden trumpets stilled the tumult of modern London today, and the world's largest city rolled back the centuries to hear
Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...
proclaimed Queen."
In 1953, he became a consultant to
Broadcast Music, Inc.
Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) is a performance rights organization in the United States. It collects blanket license fees from businesses that use music, entitling those businesses to play or sync any songs from BMI's repertoire of over 20.6 milli ...
(BMI) in London. Having started writing song lyrics while in his teens, he wrote the words for a number of popular songs, including "
Poppa Piccolino "Poppa Piccolino" was a song recorded by Diana Decker which reached number 2 on the UK singles chart in December 1953. It was the only UK hit single for this British-based American-born singer and actress. It was later also recorded by Petula Clark, ...
", originally an Italian song which became a no.2 pop hit in the UK for
Diana Decker
Diana Decker (born Isabella Charlotte Diana Decker, 9 January 1925 – 4 January 2019), was a British/American actress, singer, and television personality, who was popular from the 1940s to the early 1960s.
Early life
Decker was born to an Americ ...
in 1953, and " Band of Gold", an international chart hit for
Don Cherry
Donald Stewart Cherry (born February 5, 1934) is a Canadian former ice hockey player, coach, and television commentator. Cherry played one game in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Boston Bruins, and later coached the team for five se ...
nickname
A nickname is a substitute for the proper name of a familiar person, place or thing. Commonly used to express affection, a form of endearment, and sometimes amusement, it can also be used to express defamation of character. As a concept, it is ...
"Elvis the Pelvis" for
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...
. In 1993, BMI established an annual award in his name for the year's most-performed song, and he remained a consultant to the organisation until his death.
He died in London of cancer at the age of 90, after having suffered a stroke several years previously.