- Born
- Died
- Birth nameJohn Waldo Green
- Composer-pianist-arranger Johnny Green was born in Far Rockaway, New
York. The son of musical parents, Green was accepted by Harvard at the
age of 15, and entered the University in 1924. Between semesters,
bandleader Guy Lombardo heard his Harvard
Gold Coast Orchestra and hired him to create dance arrangements for his
nationally famous orchestra. He gained a thorough education in music,
history, economics, and government before returning to pursue a
master's degree in the field of English literature. His father
interrupted Johnny's education and forced him to become a stockbroker,
and with great unhappiness, Johnny tried it for six months. His young
bride Carol (to whom he dedicated Out of Nowhere) encouraged him to
leave Wall Street and cultivate his many musical talents. She remarked,
"We didn't have children, we had songs" (indeed, it was during his
first marriage that most of his hit standards were composed, including
"I Cover the Waterfront," You're Mine, You," "Easy Come, Easy Go,"
"Rain Rain Go Away" and "I Wanna Be Loved."). During the lean years, he
arranged for dance orchestras, most notably Jean Goldkette on NBC. He
was accompanist/arranger to stars such as
James Melton,
Libby Holman and
Ethel Merman. It was while writing material
for Gertrude Lawrence that he composed
Body and Soul, the first recording of which was made by
Jack Hylton and His Orchestra,
eleven days before the song was copyrighted.
'Nathaniel
Shilkret' and
Paul Whiteman commissioned him to
write larger works for orchestra, and he scored numerous films at
Paramount's Astoria Studios. He conducted in East Coast theatres and
toured vaudeville as musical director for
Buddy Rogers. During his two-and-a-half
years at Paramount Studios, he was able to learn more about arranging
from veterans Adolph Deutsch and
Frank Tours. In 1934, he returned from
London, where he had composed a musical comedy for
Jack Buchanan. At the age of 25,
he had several hit songs under his belt.
William Paley, the president of
the Columbia Broadcasting System and an investor in New York's St.
Regis Hotel, encouraged John W. Green to form what became known as
Johnny Green, His Piano and Orchestra. (Green added, "My arm didn't
need much twisting.") His orchestra made dance records for the Columbia
and Brunswick companies, in a depressed era when record sales were
inconsequential to a song's popularity. In 1935, Green starred on the
Socony Sketchbook, sponsored by Socony-Vacuum Oil Co. He lured the
young California songstress
Virginia Verrill to headline with him
on the Friday evening broadcasts. His "regular" cast of vocalists
included former débutante Marjory Logan,
Jimmy Farrell, and the four
Eton Boys, all of whom appeared in films and
on stage. Green's piano playing is intricate, and his musical ideas are
exceedingly clever. Green was at the top of his field in New York, and
he continued conducting on radio and in theatres into the 1940s, until
he decided to move to Hollywood and make his mark in the film business.
His credits as musical executive, arranger, conductor and composer are
lengthy, but include such highlights as
Raintree County (1957),
Bathing Beauty (1944),
Something in the Wind (1947),
Easter Parade (1948) (Academy
Award), Summer Stock (1950),
An American in Paris (1951)
(Academy Award),
Royal Wedding (1951),
High Society (1956) and
West Side Story (1961) (Academy
Award). Married three times, he had a daughter with actress
Betty Furness and two daughters with MGM
"Glamazon" Bunny Waters. He was a respected
board member of ASCAP and guest conductor with symphonies around the
globe, including the Hollywood Bowl, Denver Symphony, the Philadelphia
Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic and more. He was a chairman of the
music branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences and a
producer of television specials.- IMDb Mini Biography By: pmintun@mac.com - Joining ASCAP in 1931, his chief musical collaborators included
Gus Kahn,
'E.Y.
Harburg' ("Yip"),
Billy Rose,
Johnny Mercer,
Edward Heyman,
Paul Francis Webster, and
Mack David. His popular-song compositions
include "Body and Soul," "Coquette," "I'm Yours," "Oceans of Time,"
"Out of Nowhere," "Weep No More My Baby," "I Cover the Waterfront," "An
Hour Ago This Minute," "Rain, Rain, Go Away," "Easy Come, Easy Go,"
"You're Mine, You," "The Steam Is on the Beam," "I've Got a Heavy
Date," "I Wanna Be Loved," "Hello, My Lover, Goodbye," "Something in
the Wind," "The Turntable Song," and "The Song of Raintree County."
One of his songs, "Body and Soul," was used in the Broadway revue
"Three's A Crowd," and his stage scores include "Mr. Whittington"
(London) and "Beat the Band" and "Here Goes the Bride" (Broadway).
He had his own radio series, "World of Music," and led the orchestra
for several radio programs including
Jack Benny's and Philip Morris' shows between
1933 and 1940, and was also accompanist for
Ethel Merman,
Gertrude Lawrence, and
James Melton. In addition, he
conducted orchestras for night clubs and recordings and was guest
conductor at the Hollywood Bowl, the Denver Symphony, Philadelphia
Orchestra and the San Francisco Symphony. He conducted the Los Angeles
Philharmonic in its Symphonies for Youth and Promenade Concerts between
1959 and 1963, and for the Los Angeles Music Center opening in 1964.
He served as chairman of the Music Board at the Academy of Motion
Picture Arts and Sciences and was a life member and a member of the
Board of Governors.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Hup234!
- SpousesBunny Waters(November 20, 1943 - May 15, 1989) (his death, 2 children)Betty Furness(November 26, 1937 - 1943) (divorced, 1 child)Carol Falk(April 29, 1930 - November 22, 1937) (divorced)
- Children
- RelativesLiza Snyder(Grandchild)
- In the 1940s, along with orchestrator Conrad Salinger, he was one of the
musicians most responsible for changing (and, many would say,
improving) the overall sound of the M-G-M Orchestra, partially through
the re-seating of some of the players. This is why the overall
orchestral sound of M-G-M's musicals from the mid 1940s onward is
different from the orchestral sound of those made from 1929 until about
1944. - Recipient of thirteen Oscar nominations, five of which he actually
won. - Won Best Music, Scoring of a Musical Oscars for three films which also won Best Picture: An American in Paris (1951), West Side Story (1961) and Oliver! (1968).
- Led the Academy Award Orchestra a total of seventeen times on Oscar
Nights over the years. - Was the bandleader on The Jack Benny Program (1950) prior to Phil Harris.
- I am interviewed a lot about 'Body and Soul'...and these klutzes say, 'Tell me, when you were writing 'Body and Soul' did you know that you were writing a classic?' I say, 'A classic? What are you talking about? I knew I was writing it for Wednesday.'
- [on Frank Sinatra] I ran the gamut with Sinatra from where pictures were
concerned he wouldn't work without me to where I got dumped. A hundred
percent pro, but he is so mercurial that even a great pro can have
trouble with him. - [on Howard Keel] A very special guy. Practically seven feet tall! A
virile, manly, western voice. He used to have his voice teacher in at
five in the morning when he had an eleven o'clock recording! A
frightened guy, but in his way a good performer. - [on Judy Garland] Could there be a better actress than Judy was? She was
a real honest to God musical theater performer. Sang like an angel. A
great showman. Hell of a dancer and a heart-rending actress! - [on Deanna Durbin] I loved working with her; she was fascinating. She
was a good enough actress and still sang like an angel.
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