Sidney Lippman (March 1, 1914 – March 11, 2003) was a composer and songwriter. He wrote the music for

Nat King Cole Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's music career began after he dropped out of school at the age of 15, and continued f ...

's 1951 No. 1 hit "Too Young". " Too Young's" words were written by

Sylvia Dee Sylvia Dee (born Josephine Moore, October 22, 1914 – June 12, 1967) was an American lyricist and novelist best known for writing the lyrics to " Too Young", a hit for Nat King Cole, " The End of the World", a hit for Skeeter Davis and "Bring Me ...

, a lyricist and longtime collaborator with Lippman. They got the idea for the song when she told him that her younger brother was getting married and she thought he was too young. ''As she said that,'' Mr. Lippman recalled, ''she looked at me and I looked at her and we both said, 'Title?' '' He teamed up with

Buddy Kaye Jules Leonard "Buddy" Kaye (January 3, 1918 – November 21, 2002) was an American songwriter, lyricist, arranger, producer, and author. His songs were recorded by top performers, including Frank Sinatra, Bob Dylan, Sarah Vaughan, Dinah Washingto ...

and Fred Wise to do the words and music for " 'A' - You're Adorable (The Alphabet Song)", which also became a No. 1 hit, in 1949, as an RCA Victor recording with

Perry Como Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como (; May 18, 1912 – May 12, 2001) was an Italian-American singer, actor and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century, he recorded exclusively for RCA Victor for 44 years, after signing ...

and the

Fontane Sisters The Fontane Sisters were a Trio (music), trio (Bea, Geri and Marge Rosse) from New Milford, New Jersey, New Milford, New Jersey. Early years Born to an Italian family, their mother, Louise Rosse, was both a soloist and the leader of the St. Josep ...

. Mr. Lippman's other successful pop songs included the novelty ''Chickery Chick,'' which was a number one hit for

Sammy Kaye Sammy Kaye (born Samuel Zarnocay Jr.; March 13, 1910 – June 2, 1987) was an American bandleader and songwriter, whose tag line, "Swing and Sway with Sammy Kaye", became one of the most famous of the Big Band Era. The expression springs fr ...

in 1945. Sidney Lippman, also called Sid, was a native of

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

and graduated from the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...

. During World War II he was a merchant seaman. He moved to Manhattan and studied musical composition for a year 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 ...

. During his career, Lippman worked with

Burt Reynolds Burton Leon Reynolds Jr. (February 11, 1936 – September 6, 2018) was an American actor, considered a sex symbol and icon of 1970s American popular culture. Reynolds first rose to prominence when he starred in television series such as ' ...

, Andy Minsker and

Tracey Ullman Tracey Ullman (born Trace Ullman, 30 December 1959) is a British-American actress, comedian, singer, writer, producer, and director. Her earliest mainstream appearances were on British television sketch comedy shows ''A Kick Up the Eighties'' (wi ...

. He died aged 89, in a nursing home, in

North Bergen, New Jersey North Bergen is a township in the northern part of Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the township had a total population of 63,361. The township was founded in 1843. It was much diminished in territory by a ...

and had lived in Fort Lee

Musical theatre

* ''

Barefoot Boy with Cheek Barefoot is the state of not wearing any footwear. There are health benefits and some risks associated with going barefoot. Shoes, while they offer protection, can limit the flexibility, strength, and mobility of the foot and can lead to ...

'' (1947);

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 ...

musical; music by Lippman; lyrics by

; book by

Max Shulman Maximilian Shulman (March 14, 1919 – August 28, 1988) was an American writer and humorist best known for his television and short story character Dobie Gillis, as well as for best-selling novels. Biography Early life and career Shulman was b ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lippman, Sidney 1914 births 2003 deaths University of Minnesota alumni American male songwriters American male composers 20th-century American composers 20th-century American male musicians