New York, New York (On The Town)
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"New York, New York" is a song from the 1944 musical '' On the Town'' and the 1949 musical film of the same name. The music was written by
Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; born Louis Bernstein; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was th ...
and the lyrics by Betty Comden and
Adolph Green Adolph Green (December 2, 1914 – October 23, 2002) was an American lyricist and playwright who, with long-time collaborator Betty Comden, penned the screenplays and songs for musicals on Broadway (theatre), Broadway and in Cinema of the Unite ...
. A well known line of this song is: For the film version, the word "helluva" was changed to "wonderful" to appease the
Production Code The Motion Picture Production Code was a set of industry guidelines for the self-censorship of content that was applied to most motion pictures released by major studios in the United States from 1934 to 1968. It is also popularly known as th ...
offices. In the film, the song was performed by
Gene Kelly Eugene Curran Kelly (August 23, 1912 – February 2, 1996) was an American dancer, actor, singer, director and choreographer. He was known for his energetic and athletic dancing style and sought to create a new form of American dance accessibl ...
,
Jules Munshin Jules Munshin (February 22, 1915 – February 19, 1970) was an American actor, comedian and singer who had made his name on Broadway when he starred in '' Call Me Mister''. His additional Broadway credits include '' The Gay Life'' and '' Ba ...
, and
Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Honorific nicknames in popular music, Nicknamed the "Chairman of the Board" and "Ol' Blue Eyes", he is regarded as one of the Time 100: The Most I ...
. In 2004, the film version finished at No. 41 in AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs survey of top tunes in American cinema. It is not to be confused with the "Theme from ''New York, New York''" ("Start spreadin' the news, I'm leaving today"), originally performed by
Liza Minnelli Liza May Minnelli ( ; born March 12, 1946) is an American actress, singer, and dancer. Known for her commanding stage presence and powerful alto singing voice, Minnelli has received numerous accolades including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, ...
and later popularized by Sinatra. However, in his Concert for the Americas performance, Sinatra sang this song as the verse for his more famous "Theme from New York, New York".


In popular culture

"New York, New York" was referenced by
John Williams John Towner Williams (born February 8, 1932)Nylund, Rob (November 15, 2022)Classic Connection review, ''WBOI'' ("For the second time this year, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic honored American composer, conductor, and arranger John Williams, who w ...
for his celebratory '' For New York'', composed in 1988 for Bernstein's 70th birthday gala. The song was parodied as "Springfield, Springfield" in the 1993 episode " Boy-Scoutz 'n the Hood" of ''
The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening, James L. Brooks and Sam Simon for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is a Satire (film and television), satirical depiction of American life ...
''. A sailor even appears as another homage to the song, until he realizes he isn’t in New York (which Bart points out). A pastiche of the song entitled "Twenty-four Hours In Tunbridge Wells" was written and performed by
Eric Idle Eric Idle (born 29 March 1943) is an English actor, comedian, songwriter, musician, screenwriter and playwright. He was a member of the British comedy group Monty Python and the parody rock band the Rutles. Idle studied English at Pembroke Co ...
and
Neil Innes Neil James Innes (; 9 December 1944 – 29 December 2019) was an English writer, comedian and musician. He first came to prominence in the comedy rock group the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band and later became a frequent collaborator with the Monty Py ...
, with Gillian Gregory, for an episode of the same name in the second season of the UK comedy series '' Rutland Weekend Television'' in 1976. It was covered in a mash-up with "I Love New York" on the ''
Glee Glee may refer to: * Glee (music), a type of English choral music * ''Glee'' (TV series), an American musical comedy-drama TV series, and related media created by Ryan Murphy * ''Glee'' (Bran Van 3000 album) * ''Glee'' (Logan Lynn album) * Gle ...
'' episode "
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
". In the
Tim Burton Timothy Walter Burton (born August 25, 1958) is an American filmmaker and producer. Known for popularizing Goth subculture, Goth culture in the American film industry, Burton is famous for his Gothic film, gothic horror and dark fantasy films. ...
film '' Sleepy Hollow'',
Johnny Depp John Christopher Depp II (born June 9, 1963) is an American actor and musician. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Johnny Depp, multiple accolades, including a Golden Globe Award as well as nominations for ...
's
Ichabod Crane Ichabod Crane is a fictional character and the protagonist in Washington Irving's short story " The Legend of Sleepy Hollow". Crane is portrayed in the original work, and in most adaptations, as a tall, lanky individual. He is the local schoo ...
utters "The Bronx is up and the Battery's down" to his traveling party in the final scene. Alex, Marty, Gloria, and Melman sing the chorus of the song in '' Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted''. The song was parodied in an episode of ''
The Critic ''The Critic'' is an American Adult animation, adult animated sitcom revolving around the life of New York film critic Jay Sherman, voiced by Jon Lovitz. It was created by writing partners Al Jean and Mike Reiss, who had previously worked as w ...
'' ("New York, New York, a terrible town/The sky is brown and the water is brown").
Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; born Louis Bernstein; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was th ...
himself conducts the song in a ''New York Medley'' during the Night of 100 Stars in 1985. During '' Wheel of Fortune''s first road trip to New York in 1988, the song was played over an image montage of the city, and the lyrics were altered from "It's a helluva town" to "It's a wonderful town". The first issue of '' Sam and Max: Freelance Police'' opens with Sam singing a parody of the song's chorus. ("The mimes are food for the bums underground.") In a sketch performed in the second season of the Australian comedy series '' The Late Show'', Tony Martin, Mick Molloy, and Jason Stephens claim to have holidayed in New York City over the season break, leading to a musical sequence featuring the trio dressed in sailor costumes, miming to "New York, New York," despite the fact the city they are cavorting in is obviously
Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
(where ''The Late Show'' was filmed).


References

Film theme songs 1944 songs Songs about New York City Songs with music by Leonard Bernstein Songs with lyrics by Betty Comden Songs with lyrics by Adolph Green On the Town {{show-tune-stub