Sammy Fain (born Samuel E. Feinberg; June 17, 1902 – December 6, 1989) was an American

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

popular music Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and performed by people with little or no musical training.Popular Music. (2015). ''Fun ...

. In the 1920s and early 1930s, he contributed numerous songs that form part of

The Great American Songbook The Great American Songbook is the loosely defined canon of significant early-20th-century American jazz standards, popular songs, and show tunes. Definition According to the Great American Songbook Foundation: The "Great American Songbook" is ...

, and to

Broadway theatre Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is generally the spelling for this common noun in the United States (see American and British English spelling differences), 130 of the 144 extant and extinct Broadway venues use (used) the spelling ''Th ...

. Fain was also a popular musician and vocalist.

Biography

Sammy Fain was born in

New York City, New York 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, the son of a cantor. In 1923, Fain appeared in the short sound film, "Sammy Fain and Artie Dunn" directed by

Lee De Forest Lee de Forest (August 26, 1873 – June 30, 1961) was an American inventor and a fundamentally important early pioneer in electronics. He invented the first electronic device for controlling current flow; the three-element "Audion" triode va ...

filmed in DeForest's

Phonofilm Phonofilm is an optical sound-on-film system developed by inventors Lee de Forest and Theodore Case in the early 1920s. Introduction In 1919 and 1920, Lee De Forest, inventor of the audion tube, filed his first patents on a sound-on-film process, ...

sound-on-film Sound-on-film is a class of sound film processes where the sound accompanying a picture is recorded on photographic film, usually, but not always, the same strip of film carrying the picture. Sound-on-film processes can either record an analog ...

process. In 1925, Fain left the Fain-Dunn act to devote himself to music. Fain was a self-taught pianist who played by ear. He began working as a staff pianist and composer for music publisher Jack Mills. In 1932 he appeared in the short film "The Crooning Composer." Later, Fain worked extensively in collaboration with

Irving Kahal Irving Kahal (March 5, 1903, Houtzdale, Pennsylvania – February 7, 1942, New York City) was a popular American song lyricist active in the 1920s and 1930s. He is best remembered for his collaborations with composer Sammy Fain which started in 19 ...

. Together they wrote classics such as "

Let a Smile Be Your Umbrella "Let a Smile Be Your Umbrellas" is a popular music, popular song. The music was written by Sammy Fain, the lyrics by Irving Kahal and Francis Wheeler. The song was published in 1927 in music, 1927 and was the first collaboration between the Fain / ...

" and "

You Brought a New Kind of Love to Me "You Brought a New Kind of Love to Me" is a 1930 popular song. The credits list music and lyrics as written by Sammy Fain, Irving Kahal, and Pierre Norman. Since Fain was primarily a music writer and Kahal a lyricist, it may be assumed that the m ...

," (co-written with Pierre Norman) and " I'll Be Seeing You." Another lyricist who collaborated with Fain was

Lew Brown Lew Brown (born Louis Brownstein; December 10, 1893 – February 5, 1958) was a lyricist for popular songs in the United States. During World War I and the Roaring Twenties, he wrote lyrics for several of the top Tin Pan Alley composers, esp ...

, with whom he wrote " That Old Feeling". His

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 ...

credits also include ''Everybody's Welcome'', ''Right This Way'', '' Hellzapoppin''', ''

Flahooley ''Flahooley'' is a musical with a book by E. Y. Harburg and Fred Saidy, lyrics by Harburg, and music by Sammy Fain. Synopsis and background The allegorical tale is set in fictional Capsulanti, USA, site of the headquarters for B.G. Bigelow, Inc ...

'', ''

Ankles Aweigh ''Ankles Aweigh'' is a musical with a book by Guy Bolton and Eddie Davis, lyrics by Dan Shapiro, and music by Sammy Fain. The plot involves Hollywood starlet Wynne, who secretly marries a Navy pilot while filming a movie in Sicily. She disguises ...

'', ''Christine'' and ''Something More''.

Film works

Fain also composed music for more than 30 films in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. He was nominated for the best

Academy Award for Best Original Song The Academy Award for Best Original Song is one of the awards given annually to people working in the motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is presented to the ''songwriters'' who have composed th ...

ten times, winning twice, with " Secret Love" from ''

Calamity Jane Martha Jane Cannary (May 1, 1852 – August 1, 1903), better known as Calamity Jane, was an American frontierswoman, sharpshooter, and storyteller. In addition to many exploits she was known for being an acquaintance of Wild Bill Hickok. Late ...

'' in 1954 and with " Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing" from the movie of the same title in 1956. He co-wrote both songs with Paul Francis Webster, another long-time collaborator. Fain wrote the second theme to the TV series ''

Wagon Train ''Wagon Train'' is an American Western series that aired 8 seasons: first on the NBC television network (1957–1962), and then on ABC (1962–1965). ''Wagon Train'' debuted on September 18, 1957, and became number one in the Nielsen ratings ...

'' in 1958, which was called "(Roll Along) Wagon Train". He also contributed to the song scores for the

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...

animated films '' Alice in Wonderland'', ''

Peter Pan Peter Pan is a fictional character created by List of Scottish novelists, Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie. A free-spirited and mischievous young boy who can fly and Puer aeternus, never grows up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending ...

'', and ''

The Rescuers ''The Rescuers'' is a 1977 American animated adventure comedy-drama film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by Buena Vista Distribution. The 23rd Disney animated feature film, its story follows Bernard and Bianca, two members ...

'' (the latter, soon to be his last effort, also earned him another Oscar nomination). In 1963, he collaborated with

Harold Adamson Harold Campbell Adamson (December 10, 1906 – August 17, 1980) was an American lyricist during the 1930s and 1940s. Early life Adamson, the son of building contractor Harold Adamson and Marion "Minnie" Campbell Adamson, was born and raised in ...

, in writing songs for the film '' The Incredible Mr. Limpet'', which came out in 1964, and such songs as "I Wish I Were a Fish", "Be Careful How You Wish" and "Deep Rapture" enhanced his fame.

Recognition

In 1972, he was inducted into

The Songwriters Hall of Fame The Songwriters Hall of Fame (SHOF) is an American institution founded in 1969 by songwriter Johnny Mercer, music publisher/songwriter Abe Olman, and publisher/executive Howie Richmond to honor those whose work, represent, and maintain, the he ...

Death

Fain died from a heart attack in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, and is interred at Cedar Park Cemetery, in

Emerson, New Jersey Emerson is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States, a suburb in the New York City metropolitan area. Emerson is the most southern town in an area of the county referred to as the Pascack Valley. As of the 2010 United States Censu ...

Work on Broadway

*''Everybody's Welcome'' (1931) -

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film and television, a genre of film and television that incorporates into the narr ...

*'' Right This Way'' (1938) -

- featured

songwriter A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music gen ...

for "I'll Be Seeing You" *'' Hellzapoppin''' (1938) -

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 dur ...

- co-

and co-

lyricist A lyricist is a songwriter who writes lyrics (the spoken words), as opposed to a composer, who writes the song's music which may include but not limited to the melody, harmony, arrangement and accompaniment. Royalties A lyricist's income ...

*''George White's Scandals of 1939'' (1939) -

*''Boys and Girls Together'' (1940) -

*''Sons o' Fun'' (1941) -

- co-

and co-

*''Toplitzky of Notre Dame'' (1946) -

*''Alive and Kicking'' (1950) -

- co-

*''

'' (1951) -

*''

'' (1955) -

*''Catch a Star'' (1955) -

- co-

*''

Ziegfeld Follies The ''Ziegfeld Follies'' was a series of elaborate theatrical revue productions on Broadway in New York City from 1907 to 1931, with renewals in 1934 and 1936. They became a radio program in 1932 and 1936 as ''The Ziegfeld Follies of the Ai ...

of 1957'' (1957) -

- featured

for "An Element of Doubt" *''

Christine Christine may refer to: People * Christine (name), a female given name Film * ''Christine'' (1958 film), based on Schnitzler's play ''Liebelei'' * ''Christine'' (1983 film), based on King's novel of the same name * ''Christine'' (1987 fil ...

'' (1960) -

*''

Something More! ''Something More!'' is a musical with music by Sammy Fain and lyrics by Marilyn Bergman and Alan Bergman. The book by Nate Monaster is based on the 1962 novel ''Portofino P.T.A.'' by Gerald Green. Composer Robert Prince contributed some music ...

'' (1964) -

*''Rock 'N Roll! The First 5,000 Years'' (1982) -

- featured

for "Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing" *''Swing!'' (1999) -

- featured

for "I'll Be Seeing You" *''

'' (2018) -

(first full staging in the NYC area)

References

External links

* * *
Sammy Fain 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:Fain, Sammy 1902 births 1989 deaths 20th-century American composers 20th-century American male musicians American male composers American musical theatre composers Best Original Song Academy Award-winning songwriters Broadway composers and lyricists Burials at Cedar Park Cemetery (Emerson, New Jersey) Jewish American composers Jewish American songwriters Musicians from New York City Songwriters from New York (state) Walt Disney Animation Studios people