Theodore Fetter (June 10, 1906 – March 13, 1996) was a

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 ...

lyricist who contributed material to such revues as ''The Show Is On'' (1936) and ''Billy Rose's Aquacade'' (1939), but is best remembered for co-writing the song "

Taking a Chance on Love "Taking a Chance on Love" is a popular music, popular song from the 1940 Broadway musical ''Cabin in the Sky (musical), Cabin in the Sky''. It was introduced by Ethel Waters playing the role of Petunia Jackson both on Broadway and later in the 19 ...

," introduced in the 1940 musical comedy '' Cabin in the Sky''.

Biography

Fetter started as an actor, appearing in the 1928 revival of ''

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 in

Cole Porter Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found success on Broadway and in film. Born to ...

's 1935 musical comedy, ''

Jubilee A jubilee is a particular anniversary of an event, usually denoting the 25th, 40th, 50th, 60th, and the 70th anniversary. The term is often now used to denote the celebrations associated with the reign of a monarch after a milestone number of y ...

''. Fetter was Porter's second cousin and later wrote additional lyrics for some of Porter's songs. Beginning in 1936, he wrote lyrics for a number of revues, melodramas and burlesques in collaboration with composers,

Richard Lewine Richard Lewine (July 28, 1910 – May 19, 2005) was an American composer and songwriter on Broadway as well as television producer. Biography Career Born in New York City, Lewine attended Columbia College before beginning his career as a compo ...

Hoagy Carmichael Hoagland Howard Carmichael (November 22, 1899 – December 27, 1981) was an American musician, composer, songwriter, actor and lawyer. Carmichael was one of the most successful Tin Pan Alley songwriters of the 1930s, and was among the first ...

and

Vernon Duke Vernon Duke ( 16 January 1969) was a Russian-born American composer/songwriter who also wrote under his birth name, Vladimir Dukelsky. He is best known for "Taking a Chance on Love," with lyrics by Ted Fetter and John Latouche (1940), "I Can't ...

. In 1940, Duke was working on ''Cabin in the Sky'' with lyricist John Latouche and needed a new number for star

Ethel Waters Ethel Waters (October 31, 1896 – September 1, 1977) was an American singer and actress. Waters frequently performed jazz, swing, and pop music on the Broadway stage and in concerts. She began her career in the 1920s singing blues. Her not ...

. He pulled out an old "trunk song" that he had written years earlier with Fetter, called "Fooling Around With Love". With Fetter's permission, Latouche revised the lyric as "

" and the song was added to the show three days before the opening. According to Duke's autobiography, ''Passport to Paris'', "If ever a song stopped the show, but cold, it was 'Taking a Chance on Love.'"Duke, Vernon. ''Passport to Paris''. Boston: Little, Brown and Company (1955). Fetter entered the television industry in the early 1950s as a television producer for ''

Your Hit Parade ''Your Hit Parade'' was an American radio and television music program that was broadcast from 1935 to 1953 on radio, and seen from 1950 to 1959 on television. It was sponsored by American Tobacco's Lucky Strike cigarettes. During its 24-year r ...

'' and later worked for

Jack Paar Jack Harold Paar (May 1, 1918 – January 27, 2004) was an American talk show host, author, radio and television comedian, and film actor. He was the second host of ''The Tonight Show'' from 1957 to 1962. ''Time'' magazine's obituary of Paar repo ...

. In 1956 he moved to ABC, where he worked as national director of programs until 1968, after which he became an independent producer. From 1974 to 1979 he served as the curator of the Theater and Music Collection at the

Museum of the City of New York A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make these i ...

. Copies of the songs and shows Fetter wrote with Richard Lewine are available for research in the Billy Rose Collection of the

New York Public Library The New York Public Library (NYPL) is a public library system in New York City. With nearly 53 million items and 92 locations, the New York Public Library is the second largest public library in the United States (behind the Library of Congress ...

. Fetter died, aged 89, New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center in Manhattan."Theodore Fetter Songwriter, 89"
(obituary), ''New York Times'', March 17, 1996.

Selected list of works

* 1936 ''

The Show is On ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

'' (music by

and

) * 1937 ''Naughty Naught '00'' (music by

) * 1937 ''The Fireman's Flame'' (music by Richard Lewine) * 1938 ''The Girl from Wyoming'' (music by Richard Lewine) * 1939 ''Billy Rose's Aquacade'' (music by

Dana Suesse Nadine Dana Suesse (; December 3, 1911 – October 16, 1987) was an American musician, composer and lyricist. Biography Dana Suesse was born in Kansas City, Missouri in 1909. When she grew too tall for ballet, she began piano lessons with Gertru ...

) * 1939 "After Tonight" (music by

Glenn Miller Alton Glen Miller (March 1, 1904 – December 15, 1944) was an American big band founder, owner, conductor, composer, arranger, trombone player and recording artist before and during World War II, when he was an officer in the United States Arm ...

)

References

External links

"Theodore Fetter Songwriter, 89"
(obituary), ''New York Times'', March 17, 1996. *
Richard Lewine Papers
New York Public Library {{DEFAULTSORT:Fetter, Ted American male songwriters American musical theatre lyricists 1907 births 1996 deaths 20th-century American musicians 20th-century American male musicians