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Ralph Rainger ( Reichenthal; October 7, 1901 – October 23, 1942) was an American composer of popular music principally for films.


Biography

Born Ralph Reichenthal 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 ...
, United States, Rainger initially embarked on a legal career, having obtained his law degree at Brown University in 1926. He had, however, studied piano from a young age and attended the Institute of Musical Art in New York. Public performances include radio broadcasts from New York and WOR (New Jersey) as early as 1922. These were as soloist, accompanist to singers, and as duo-pianist with Adam Carroll or "Edgar Fairchild" (the name Milton Suskind used for commercial work).“Round the Radio Circuit.” New York Telegram and Evening Mail, 2 July 1924. He also prepared piano rolls between 1922 and 1928 for Ampico, Standard, and DeLuxe. Some of these used the "Reichenthal" surname, others the "Rainger" name he was gradually adopting commercially. Other early musical activities include arranging for bandleader Ray Miller. His own band leading included a 1923 engagement—Ralph Reichenthal Orchestra—at the Asbury Park (NJ) Claredon-Brunswick Hotel. Rainger's first credit on Broadway, 1926's "Queen High", was as duo-pianist in the pit with Fairchild, following the show's break-in in Philadelphia. He later played for 1928's "Angela" and "Cross my Heart". His first hit "Moanin' Low," with lyrics by
Howard Dietz Howard Dietz (September 8, 1896 – July 30, 1983) was an American publicist, lyricist, and librettist, best remembered for his songwriting collaboration with Arthur Schwartz. Biography Dietz was born in New York City. He attended Columbia Colle ...
, was written for
Clifton Webb Webb Parmelee Hollenbeck (November 19, 1889 – October 13, 1966), known professionally as Clifton Webb, was an American actor, singer, and dancer. He worked extensively and was known for his stage appearances in the plays of Noël Coward, i ...
's co-star
Libby Holman Elizabeth Lloyd Holman (née Holzman; May 23, 1904 – June 18, 1971) was an American socialite, actress, singer, and activist. Early life Elizabeth Lloyd Holzman was born May 23, 1904, in Cincinnati, Ohio, the daughter of a lawyer and stockbrok ...
in the 1929
revue A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own duri ...
''
The Little Show ''The Little Show'' was a musical revue with lyrics by Howard Dietz and music by Arthur Schwartz. It was the first of 11 musicals that featured the songs of Dietz and Schwartz. The revue opened at the Music Box Theatre on Broadway on April 30, 192 ...
''. Webb, tracing the song's origin, noted that Rainger was Webb's accompanist in vaudeville when Webb was invited to appear in the new show, and that Webb had asked Rainger for a contribution. With the advent of motion picture sound and the film musical, Rainger and other songwriters found work in Hollywood. He teamed up with lyricist
Leo Robin Leo Robin (April 6, 1900 – December 29, 1984) was an American composer, lyricist and songwriter. He is probably best known for collaborating with Ralph Rainger on the 1938 Oscar-winning song "Thanks for the Memory," sung by Bob Hope and Shirl ...
to produce a string of successful film songs, including "I'll Take An Option On You", from the Broadway hit show ''Tattle Tales'' (1933). In the years that followed, Rainger wrote or collaborated on such hit songs as " I Wished on the Moon", " Love in Bloom" (comedian
Jack Benny Jack Benny (born Benjamin Kubelsky, February 14, 1894 – December 26, 1974) was an American entertainer who evolved from a modest success playing violin on the vaudeville circuit to one of the leading entertainers of the twentieth century with ...
's theme song), "Faithful Forever", " Easy Living", "
June in January "June in January" is a popular song with music by Ralph Rainger and lyrics by Leo Robin, published in 1934. The song was introduced in the movie '' Here Is My Heart'' by Bing Crosby in 1934. The Crosby recording, made on November 9, 1934 with Ge ...
", " Blue Hawaii", and with
Leo Robin Leo Robin (April 6, 1900 – December 29, 1984) was an American composer, lyricist and songwriter. He is probably best known for collaborating with Ralph Rainger on the 1938 Oscar-winning song "Thanks for the Memory," sung by Bob Hope and Shirl ...
on the 1938 Oscar-winning song "
Thanks for the Memory "Thanks for the Memory" (1938) is a popular song composed by Ralph Rainger with lyrics by Leo Robin. It was introduced in the 1938 film ''The Big Broadcast of 1938'' by Bob Hope and Shirley Ross, and recorded by Shep Fields and His Orchestr ...
", sung by
Bob Hope Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was a British-American comedian, vaudevillian, actor, singer and dancer. With a career that spanned nearly 80 years, Hope appeared in more than 70 short and feature films, with 5 ...
in the film ''
The Big Broadcast of 1938 ''The Big Broadcast of 1938'' is a Paramount Pictures musical comedy film starring W. C. Fields and featuring Bob Hope. Directed by Mitchell Leisen, the film is the last in a series of ''Big Broadcast'' movies that were variety show anthologies. ...
''. Songwriting for Hollywood's mass audience had its challenges, as lyricist Leo Robin noted:
On the stage after all, you can aim at a particular audience. You can please just New York, or just a small portion of New York. In pictures you have to please the whole country, and most of the world besides. The songs must have universal appeal, get down to something that every human being feels and can understand. That isn’t so hard really, once you get the trick of simplicity.
Rainger paid one year's tuition fees to the Austrian composer
Arnold Schoenberg Arnold Schoenberg or Schönberg (, ; ; 13 September 187413 July 1951) was an Austrian-American composer, music theorist, teacher, writer, and painter. He is widely considered one of the most influential composers of the 20th century. He was as ...
in advance, so that Schoenberg could pay for the transportation of his belongings to Los Angeles from Paris in 1933. Rainger died in a plane crash near
Palm Springs Palm Springs (Cahuilla: ''Séc-he'') is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States, within the Colorado Desert's Coachella Valley. The city covers approximately , making it the largest city in Riverside County by land ...
,
California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
, in 1942. He was a passenger aboard
American Airlines Flight 28 American Airlines Flight 28 was a scheduled domestic passenger flight that crashed on October 23, 1942, in Chino Canyon near Palm Springs, California, United States, after being struck by a United States Army Air Forces Lockheed Ventura B-34 Le ...
, a
DC-3 The Douglas DC-3 is a propeller-driven airliner manufactured by Douglas Aircraft Company, which had a lasting effect on the airline industry in the 1930s to 1940s and World War II. It was developed as a larger, improved 14-bed sleeper version ...
airliner that was involved in a mid-air collision with a
U.S. Army Air Corps The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical ri ...
bomber. Rainger, then age 41, was survived by his wife, Elizabeth ("Betty"), an eight-year-old son, and two daughters, aged five and one. In the initial 1942 press coverage of the crash, the collision was not acknowledged; Betty Rainger later sued American Airlines and won a substantial judgement late in 1943.


Film credits

Film credits include:For a complete film score list, see
Songwriters Hall of Fame; Ralph Rainger film scores
/ref> *1930 - ''
Tom Sawyer Thomas Sawyer () is the titular character of the Mark Twain novel ''The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'' (1876). He appears in three other novels by Twain: ''Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'' (1884), ''Tom Sawyer Abroad'' (1894), and ''Tom Sawyer, Dete ...
'' *1930 - ''
The Virtuous Sin ''The Virtuous Sin'' is a 1930 American Pre-Code Hollywood, pre-Code comedy-drama film directed by George Cukor and Louis J. Gasnier and starring Walter Huston, Kay Francis, and Kenneth MacKenna. The screenplay by Martin Brown and Louise Long is ...
'' *1932 - ''
The Big Broadcast ''The Big Broadcast'' is a 1932 American pre-Code musical comedy film directed by Frank Tuttle and starring Bing Crosby, Stuart Erwin, and Leila Hyams. Based on the play ''Wild Waves'' by William Ford Manley, the film is about a radio-sing ...
'' *1932 - '' A Farewell to Arms'' *1932 - ''
This Is the Night This Is the Night may refer to: Film * ''This Is the Night'' (1932 film), an American pre-Code comedy film, Cary Grant's feature film debut * ''This Is the Night'' (2021 film), an American drama film Music * "This Is the Night", fourth track on ...
'' *1933 - ''
A Bedtime Story ''A Bedtime Story'' is a 1933 American pre-Code romantic comedy film starring Maurice Chevalier. Plot Chevalier plays a Parisian playboy who finds himself obliged to care for an abandoned baby. The film was directed by Norman Taurog and also st ...
'' *1933 - ''
From Hell to Heaven ''From Hell to Heaven'' is a 1933 American pre-Code drama film. It was directed by Erle C. Kenton, and features an ensemble cast including Carole Lombard, Jack Oakie, Adrienne Ames and Sidney Blackmer. It was adapted from the stage play by Law ...
'' *1933 - ''
She Done Him Wrong ''She Done Him Wrong'' is a 1933 pre-Code American crime/comedy film starring Mae West and Cary Grant. The plot includes melodramatic and musical elements, with a supporting cast featuring Owen Moore, Gilbert Roland, Noah Beery Sr., Rochelle Hu ...
'' *1933 - '' International House'' *1933 - ''
Three-Cornered Moon ''Three Cornered Moon'' is a 1933 American pre-Code comedy film directed by Elliott Nugent, written by Ray Harris and S.K. Lauren, and starring Claudette Colbert, Richard Arlen, Mary Boland, and Wallace Ford. Based on a 1933 play by Gertrude Ton ...
'' *1934 - ''
Kiss and Make-Up ''Kiss and Make-Up'' is a 1934 romantic comedy film starring Cary Grant as a doctor who specializes in making women beautiful. Genevieve Tobin and Helen Mack play his romantic entanglements. The film was based on the play ''Kozmetika'' by (credi ...
'' *1934 - '' Come on Marines'' *1934 - ''
Bolero Bolero is a genre of song which originated in eastern Cuba in the late 19th century as part of the trova tradition. Unrelated to the older Spanish dance of the same name, bolero is characterized by sophisticated lyrics dealing with love. It has ...
'' *1934 - '' All of Me'' *1934 - '' Little Miss Marker'' *1934 - ''
Search for Beauty ''Search for Beauty'' is a 1934 American pre-Code dramedy film, with some musical Busby Berkeley-esque athletic sequences, directed by Erle C. Kenton and starring Buster Crabbe and Ida Lupino (the film was released shortly before Lupino's 16th ...
'' *1934 - ''
Six of a Kind ''Six of a Kind'' is an American 1934 pre-Code comedy film directed by Leo McCarey and starring Charles Ruggles, Mary Boland, W.C. Fields, George Burns, and Gracie Allen. It is a whimsical and often absurd road movie about two couples who decid ...
'' *1935 - '' The Devil Is a Woman'' *1935 - ''
The Big Broadcast of 1936 ''The Big Broadcast of 1936'' is a 1935 American comedy film directed by Norman Taurog, and is the second in the series of ''Big Broadcast'' movies. The musical comedy starred Jack Oakie, Bing Crosby, George Burns, Gracie Allen, Ethel Merman, Nic ...
'' *1935 - ''
Ruggles of Red Gap ''Ruggles of Red Gap'' is a 1935 American comedy western film directed by Leo McCarey and starring Charles Laughton, Mary Boland, Charlie Ruggles, and ZaSu Pitts and featuring Roland Young and Leila Hyams. It was based on the best-selling 1915 ...
'' *1936 - ''
The Big Broadcast of 1937 ''The Big Broadcast of 1937'' is a 1936 Paramount Pictures production directed by Mitchell Leisen, and is the third in the series of ''Big Broadcast'' movies. The musical comedy stars Jack Benny, George Burns, Gracie Allen, Bob Burns, Martha Ray ...
'' *1936 - ''
Rhythm on the Range ''Rhythm on the Range'' is a 1936 American Western musical film directed by Norman Taurog and starring Bing Crosby, Frances Farmer, and Bob Burns. Based on a story by Mervin J. Houser, the film is about a cowboy who meets a beautiful young wom ...
'' *1936 - '' Rose of the Rancho'' *1936 - ''
Poppy A poppy is a flowering plant in the subfamily Papaveroideae of the family Papaveraceae. Poppies are herbaceous plants, often grown for their colourful flowers. One species of poppy, ''Papaver somniferum'', is the source of the narcotic drug opi ...
'' *1936 - ''
Palm Springs Palm Springs (Cahuilla: ''Séc-he'') is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States, within the Colorado Desert's Coachella Valley. The city covers approximately , making it the largest city in Riverside County by land ...
'' *1936 - ''
Three Cheers for Love ''Three Cheers for Love'' is a 1936 American musical film directed by Ray McCarey, written by George Marion, Jr., and starring Eleanore Whitney, Robert Cummings, William Frawley, Elizabeth Patterson, Roscoe Karns and John Halliday. It was rel ...
'' *1937 - '' King of Gamblers'' *1937 - ''
The Big Broadcast of 1938 ''The Big Broadcast of 1938'' is a Paramount Pictures musical comedy film starring W. C. Fields and featuring Bob Hope. Directed by Mitchell Leisen, the film is the last in a series of ''Big Broadcast'' movies that were variety show anthologies. ...
'', including the Academy Award-winning song "
Thanks for the Memory "Thanks for the Memory" (1938) is a popular song composed by Ralph Rainger with lyrics by Leo Robin. It was introduced in the 1938 film ''The Big Broadcast of 1938'' by Bob Hope and Shirley Ross, and recorded by Shep Fields and His Orchestr ...
" *1937 - ''
Blossoms on Broadway ''Blossoms on Broadway'' is a 1937 American comedy film directed by Richard Wallace and written by Theodore Reeves. The film stars Edward Arnold, Shirley Ross, John Trent, Rufe Davis, Joe Weber, and Lew Fields. The film was released on Novembe ...
'' *1937 - '' Hills of Old Wyoming'' *1937 - ''Ebb Tide'' *1937 - '' Swing High, Swing Low'' *1937 - ''
Waikiki Wedding ''Waikiki Wedding'' is a 1937 American musical film directed by Frank Tuttle and starring Bing Crosby, Bob Burns, Martha Raye, and Shirley Ross. Crosby plays the part of Tony Marvin, a PR man charged with extolling the virtues of the Territory ...
'' *1937 - ''
Souls at Sea ''Souls at Sea'' is a 1937 American adventure film directed by Henry Hathaway and starring Gary Cooper and George Raft. Based on a story by Ted Lesser, the film is about a first mate on a slave ship who frees the slaves on the ship after a mutiny ...
'' *1938 - ''
Her Jungle Love ''Her Jungle Love'' is a 1938 American south seas adventure film directed by George Archainbaud and starring Dorothy Lamour and Ray Milland. Portions of the film were shot at Palm Springs, California.here for Table of Contents Plot Two pilot ...
'' *1938 - ''
Artists and Models Abroad ''Artists and Models Abroad'' (UK title: ''Stranded in Paris'') is a 1938 comedy film directed by Mitchell Leisen and starring Jack Benny and Joan Bennett. It was made by Paramount Pictures. The screenplay was written by Ken Englund, Howard Lin ...
'' *1938 - ''
Romance in the Dark ''Romance in the Dark'' is a 1938 American comedy musical film directed by H. C. Potter and starring Gladys Swarthout, John Boles, John Barrymore, and Claire Dodd. It is one of five films produced by Paramount in the 1930s featuring Gladys Swa ...
'' *1938 - ''
The Texans ''The Texans'' is a 1938 American Western film directed by James P. Hogan and starring Joan Bennett and Randolph Scott. The screenplay was written by Bertram Millhauser, Paul Sloane and William Wister Haines and is based on the novel ''North ...
'' *1939 - ''
Gulliver's Travels ''Gulliver's Travels'', or ''Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World. In Four Parts. By Lemuel Gulliver, First a Surgeon, and then a Captain of Several Ships'' is a 1726 prose satire by the Anglo-Irish writer and clergyman Jonathan ...
'', including the Academy Award nominated song " Faithful Forever" *1939 - '' $1000 a Touchdown'' *1941 - '' Cadet Girl'' *1941 - '' A Yank in the R.A.F.'' *1941 - ''
Tall, Dark and Handsome "Tall, dark, and handsome" is a phrase that refers to an appealing man, often found in romantic fiction aimed at women. History The term came to prominent use in the early 1900s and was commonly used in Hollywood during the 1920s to describe Ru ...
'' *1941 - '' Rise and Shine'' *1941 - ''
New York Town ''New York Town'' is a 1941 American romantic comedy film directed by Charles Vidor and starring Fred MacMurray, Mary Martin, Akim Tamiroff, and Robert Preston. The film was written by Lewis Meltzer and an uncredited Preston Sturges based on a ...
'' *1942 - ''
Footlight Serenade ''Footlight Serenade'' is a 1942 musical comedy film directed by Gregory Ratoff, starring Betty Grable, John Payne, and Victor Mature. Plot Tommy Lundy is an arrogant champion boxer who is hired by Broadway promoter Bruce McKay to star in a sta ...
'' *1942 - ''
True to the Army ''True to the Army'' is a 1942 American comedy film directed by Albert S. Rogell, written by Art Arthur, Bradford Ropes, Edmund L. Hartmann and Val Burton, and starring Judy Canova, Allan Jones, Ann Miller, Jerry Colonna, Clarence Kolb, Edwar ...
'' *1942 - ''
My Gal Sal ''My Gal Sal'' is a 1942 American musical film distributed by 20th Century Fox and starring Rita Hayworth and Victor Mature. The film is a biopic of 1890s composer and songwriter Paul Dresser and singer Sally Elliot. It was based on a biographi ...
''


See also

* :Songs with music by Ralph Rainger


References


External links

* * * * *
Ralph Rainger recordings
at the
Discography of American Historical Recordings The Discography of American Historical Recordings (DAHR) is a database of master recordings made by American record companies during the 78rpm era. The DAHR provides some of these original recordings, free of charge, via audio streaming, along with ...
. {{DEFAULTSORT:Rainger, Ralph 1901 births 1942 deaths Accidental deaths in California American male composers Songwriters from New York (state) Best Original Song Academy Award-winning songwriters Musicians from New York City Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1942 Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in the United States Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale) 20th-century American composers 20th-century American male musicians American male songwriters