Hugh Durham Prince, also known as Hughie Prince, (9 August 1906 – 15 January 1960) was an American film composer and songwriter. He composed " Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" with lyricist

Don Raye Don Raye (born Donald MacRae Wilhoite Jr., March 16, 1909 – January 29, 1985) was an American songwriter, best known for his songs for The Andrews Sisters such as "Beat Me Daddy, Eight to the Bar", " The House of Blue Lights", "Just for a Thr ...

for the movie comedy, '' Buck Privates'', which was nominated for an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

for Best Song in 1942.

Biography

Hugh Prince was born in

Greenville, South Carolina Greenville (; locally ) is a city in and the seat of Greenville County, South Carolina, United States. With a population of 70,720 at the 2020 census, it is the sixth-largest city in the state. Greenville is located approximately halfway be ...

, United States. In 1920 he was living with his parents on Westover Avenue in

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia Be ...

. His father died in 1921 and by the 1930s Prince was living with his mother in

Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...

in New York where he worked as a stage actor. During the 1940s, Prince and his mother were living in New York City where he worked as a songwriter in the music industry. His music was used in more than 56 film and television productions. From 1940, he composed film music, starting with "Hit the Road" and "Rhumboogie" for the film ''

Argentine Nights ''Argentine Nights'' is a 1940 musical film directed by Albert S. Rogell and starring The Andrews Sisters. It was their first film. Premise Three conmen go to Argentina to escape their creditors. Production The Ritz Brothers appeared in the film ...

''. In 1940, Prince and

wrote the song " Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy", sung by the Andrews Sisters, in the 1941 film comedy, '' Buck Privates'', with Bud Abbott and Lou Costello in the lead roles and gaining as Oscar nomination in the Best Song category. However, the statue went to

Jerome Kern Jerome David Kern (January 27, 1885 – November 11, 1945) was an American composer of musical theatre and popular music. One of the most important American theatre composers of the early 20th century, he wrote more than 700 songs, used in over ...

and

Oscar Hammerstein II Oscar Greeley Clendenning Hammerstein II (; July 12, 1895 – August 23, 1960) was an American lyricist, librettist, theatrical producer, and (usually uncredited) director in the musical theater for almost 40 years. He won eight Ton ...

for their song " The Last Time I Saw Paris" from the film musical '' Lady Be Good''. Prince had a small role as Henry in ''Buck Privates''. "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" remained the most successful song by Prince and, even after his death, it was used in feature films, television productions and shows. He wrote additional music for ''

The Girl from Nantucket ''The Girl From Nantucket'' is a two-act comedy musical with lyrics by Kay Twomey and music by Jacques Belasco. The musical's book, by Paul Stamford, Harold Sherman and Hi Cooper, is based on a story by Fred Thompson and Bernie Giler. Prod ...

'', and composed the score, wrote the lyrics and the script and directed the film drama ''The Strip Tease Murder Case'' in 1950. Prince died in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, United States in 1960, aged 53, and was buried in Maple Grove Cemetery in

Rutland County Rutland County is a county located in the U.S. state of Vermont. As of the 2020 census, the population was 60,572, making it the second-most populous county in Vermont. Its county seat and most populous municipality is the city of Rutland. H ...

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

Songs (selection)

*1939 "

She Had to Go and Lose It at the Astor "She Had to Go and Lose It at the Astor" is a 1939 comic song by Don Raye and Hughie Prince and was recorded by Dick Robertson, Pearl Bailey and the British bandleader and clarinetist Harry Roy. The original recording credits the writing and arra ...

" – with

*1941: " Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy", "Bounce Me Brother with a Solid Four", "When Private Brown Becomes a Captain", "You're a Lucky Fellow, Mr. Smith", "I Wish You Were Here"—composed with Don Raye for the movie '' Buck Privates'' *1941: "You're a Lucky Fellow, Mr. Smith" used in the movie '' In the Navy'' *1941: "

Beat Me Daddy, Eight to the Bar "Beat Me Daddy, Eight to the Bar" is a song written in 1940 by Don Raye, Hughie Prince, and Ray McKinley. It follows the American boogie-woogie tradition of syncopated piano music. Background The title adopts 1940s' hipster slang coined by Raye ...

" used in the short film ''In the Groove'' *1944: "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" used in '' Follow the Boys'' *1944: "Sing" from the movie '' Moonlight and Cactus'' *1944: "Let's Have Another One" from the movie '' Dreaming'' *1946: "Solid Potato Salad" from the movie '' Breakfast in Hollywood'' *1946: "Bounce Me Brother with a Solid Four" used in '' One Exciting Week'' *1947: "Bounce Me Brother with a Solid Four" used in ''

The Egg and I ''The Egg and I'', first published in 1945, is a humorous memoir by American author Betty MacDonald about her adventures and travels as a young wife on a chicken farm on the Olympic Peninsula in the US state of Washington. The book is based on ...

'' *1953 "Pour Me a Glass of Teardrops" – with Dick Rogers *1962: "Rhumboogie" used in ''

Term of Trial ''Term of Trial'' is a 1962 British drama film written and directed by Peter Glenville and produced by James Woolf for his Romulus Films company, with James H. Ware as associate producer. Its screenplay was based on the 1961 novel of the same ...

'' *1976: "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy", used in the

Bette Midler Bette Midler (;''Inside the Actors Studio'', 2004 born December 1, 1945) is an American singer, actress, comedian and author. Throughout her career, which spans over five decades, Midler has received List of awards and nominations received by Be ...

Show *1986: "Beat Me Daddy, Eight to the Bar", used in the 40th Annual Tony Awards *1988: "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" used in the television mini-series ''War and Remembrance'' *1992: "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" used in '' The Tonight Show'' starring

Johnny Carson John William Carson (October 23, 1925 – January 23, 2005) was an American television host, comedian, writer and producer. He is best known as the host of ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' (1962–1992). Carson received six Pr ...

*1995: "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" used in ''Beautiful Is the Youth'' (''Lust och fägring stor'') *1997: "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" used in the television mini-series '' The Shining'' *2004: "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" used in '' Something the Lord Made'' *2009: "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" used in ''The Land of the Lost'' *2012: "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" used in '' Red Tails'' *2015: "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" used in ''

Pitch Perfect 2 ''Pitch Perfect 2'' is a 2015 American musical comedy film directed and produced by Elizabeth Banks (in her feature directorial debut) and written by Kay Cannon. It is a sequel to the 2012 film ''Pitch Perfect'' and the second installment in the ...

References

External links

Prince
on the

Internet Movie Database IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...

Songs written or co-written by Hugh Durham Prince - dbopm: the database of popular music
{{DEFAULTSORT:Prince, Hughie 1906 births 1960 deaths 20th-century American composers American male composers American male songwriters Musicians from Greenville, South Carolina Musicians from Norfolk, Virginia 20th-century American male musicians