Melville A. Leven (11 November, 1914–17 December, 2007) was an

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composer and lyricist who had a long association with

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, although he also wrote songs for Peggy Lee ("Every Time"),

The Andrews Sisters The Andrews Sisters were an American close harmony singing group of the swing and boogie-woogie eras. The group consisted of three sisters: contralto LaVerne Sophia Andrews (July 6, 1911 – May 8, 1967), soprano Maxene Anglyn Andrews (January ...

("Commoners Boogy"),

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 ...

, Dean Martin, and Les Brown, among others.

Biography

Mel Leven was born in Chicago. His most famous song is arguably "Cruella de Vil" from the 1961 Disney animated feature ''

One Hundred and One Dalmatians ''One Hundred and One Dalmatians'' (also simply known as ''101 Dalmatians'') is a 1961 American animated adventure comedy film produced by Walt Disney Productions and based on the 1956 novel '' The Hundred and One Dalmatians'' by Dodie Smith. Th ...

'', which is claimed to have been written in homage to

Thelonious Monk Thelonious Sphere Monk (, October 10, 1917 – February 17, 1982) was an American jazz pianist and composer. He had a unique improvisational style and made numerous contributions to the standard jazz repertoire, including " 'Round Midnight", ...

's "Ba-Lue Bolivar Ba-Lues-Are". That same year, he also wrote the story and new lyrics to sixteen tunes for the film '' Babes in Toyland''. In later years, he wrote songs, stories, and did voice-over work for the

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children's series '' Big Blue Marble'', as well as working on a number of projects for television commercials. He also composed " When The Buzzards Return To Hinckley Ridge" for the 1969 Disney animated short, "

It's Tough to Be a Bird ''It's Tough to Be a Bird'' is a 1969 American animated educational short film directed by Ward Kimball and produced by Walt Disney Productions. The short won the Academy Award for Best Short Subject, Cartoons in 1970 and was nominated for a BAF ...

", which went on to win the Academy Award for Best Short Subject in 1970. The song was sung by comedian

Ruth Buzzi Ruth Ann Buzzi ( ; born July 24, 1936) is an American actress, comedian, and singer. She has appeared on stage, in films, and on television. She is best known for her performances on the comedy-variety show ''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In'' from 1968 ...

. Leven was also in Snap, Crackle, Pop commercials. He also wrote the ''Little Ranger Nature'' series for Disney in the 1960s. His work has been honored with two Emmy Awards and two Peabody Awards. A conservationist and talented fly fisherman, in retirement Leven traveled the world in pursuit of fish and became a beloved fixture along Northern California rivers in particular. He features prominently in the 2009 documentary Rivers of a Lost Coast, on the decline of the California

steelhead Steelhead, or occasionally steelhead trout, is the common name of the anadromous form of the coastal rainbow trout or redband trout (O. m. gairdneri). Steelhead are native to cold-water tributaries of the Pacific basin in Northeast Asia and ...

population.Bio page
from website for film, ''Rivers of a Lost Coast'', dir. Justin Coupe and Palmer Taylor (2009). According to his son, Leven died on December 17, 2007. He was 93. Mel Leven was divorced and had two children, Bill Leven and a daughter Laurie Fondiler/Leven. His first wife was Vera and second wife' mother of Bill and Laurie was, Jeanie Francis.

References

Works written by: LEVEN MELVILLE A
at the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers *
Mel Leven Biography
from

Music Theatre International Music Theatre International (MTI) is a theatrical licensing agency based in New York City. Description MTI was founded in 1952 by American composer and lyricist Frank Loesser and orchestrator Don Walker. Along with the licensing rights to Lo ...

1914 births 2007 deaths Songwriters from Illinois Musicians from Chicago Walt Disney Animation Studios people 20th-century American musicians {{US-songwriter-stub