Harold Arlen facts for kids

Harold Arlen (born Hyman Arluck; February 15, 1905 – April 23, 1986) was an American composer who wrote many popular songs. He created over 500 songs, and many of them are known all over the world.

Arlen is famous for writing the songs for the 1939 movie The Wizard of Oz. This includes the very famous song "Over the Rainbow". The words for these songs were written by Yip Harburg. "Over the Rainbow" was even voted the top song of the 20th century by music groups in America. Arlen is a big part of the collection of classic American songs called the Great American Songbook.

Life and Music Career

Harold Arlen was born in Buffalo, New York, in the United States. His father was a cantor, which is a singer who leads prayers in a synagogue. Harold learned to play the piano when he was young. As a teenager, he started his own band.

Early Days in Music

Arlen became quite good as a pianist and singer in his hometown. When he was in his early twenties, he moved to New York City. There, he worked as an accompanist, playing piano for performers in vaudeville shows. This is when he changed his name to Harold Arlen.

Between 1926 and 1934, Arlen sometimes sang on records with different bands. He usually sang songs that he had written himself.

Writing Hit Songs

In 1929, Arlen wrote his first well-known song, "Get Happy". The words for this song were written by Ted Koehler. For several years in the 1930s, Arlen and Koehler worked together. They wrote songs for the Cotton Club, a famous night club in Harlem, New York. They also wrote music for Broadway musicals and Hollywood films.

Arlen and Koehler created many hit songs together. Some of these popular songs include "Let's Fall in Love" and "Stormy Weather". Arlen also kept performing as a pianist and singer.

Jazz and Movie Musicals

Arlen's songs were always popular with jazz musicians. This is because he was very good at adding a blues feeling to his American popular songs.

In the mid-1930s, Arlen got married. He started spending more time in California, writing songs for movie musicals. During this time, he began working with a new lyricist named E. Y. "Yip" Harburg.

The Wizard of Oz

In 1938, Arlen and Harburg were hired by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to write songs for the movie The Wizard of Oz. The most famous song from this movie is "Over the Rainbow". For this song, they won an Academy Award for Best Music, Original Song.

They also wrote other famous songs together. These include "Down with Love" and "Lydia the Tattooed Lady". "Happiness is a Thing Called Joe" was another song they wrote for the 1943 movie Cabin in the Sky.

Harold Arlen was a good friend of actor Ray Bolger. Ray Bolger played the Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz. They even lived together for a time.

Later Collaborations

In the 1940s, Arlen started working with lyricist Johnny Mercer. They wrote many more hit songs. Some of these include "Blues in the Night", "Out of this World", and "That Old Black Magic". They also wrote "Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive" and "Come Rain or Come Shine".

Arlen wrote two very important songs for the singer Judy Garland. "Over the Rainbow" showed her as a young, innocent girl. Later, he wrote "The Man That Got Away" for her. This song was for the 1954 movie A Star Is Born and showed her as a more experienced singer.

Harold Arlen passed away from cancer in his apartment in Manhattan when he was 81 years old.

Arlen performs with Peggy Lee and Vic Damone in 1961.

Key Moments

• 1905: Harold Arlen was born in Buffalo, New York.
• 1920 (age 15): He started his first professional band, called Hyman Arluck's Snappy Trio.
• 1925 (age 20): He moved to New York City with his band, The Buffalodians.
• 1928 (age 23): Hyman Arluck changed his name to Harold Arlen.
• 1929 (age 24): He wrote his first well-known song, "Get Happy."
• 1930–1934: He wrote music for the famous Cotton Club.
• 1933 (age 28): He wrote the major hit song "Stormy Weather" with Ted Koehler.
• 1937 (age 32): He married Anya Taranda, a model and actress.
• 1938 (age 33): He was hired by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to write songs for The Wizard of Oz.
• 1938 (age 33): He got the idea for "Over the Rainbow" after seeing a rainbow in Hollywood.
• 1942 (age 37): He wrote "That Old Black Magic" with Johnny Mercer.
• 1954 (age 49): The musical A Star is Born featured his song "The Man That Got Away" sung by Judy Garland.
• 1970 (age 65): Arlen's wife, Anya, passed away.
• 1979 (age 74): He was added to the American Theater Hall of Fame.
• 1986 (age 81): Harold Arlen passed away in New York City.

Works for Broadway

Harold Arlen wrote music for many Broadway shows:

• Earl Carroll's Vanities of 1930 (1930) – a revue (a show with songs, dances, and skits)
• You Said It (1931) – a musical
• Earl Carroll's Vanities of 1932 (1932) – a revue
• Americana (1932) – a revue
• George White's Music Hall Varieties (1933) – a revue
• Life Begins at 8:40 (1934) – a revue
• The Show is On (1936) – a revue
• Hooray for What! (1937) – a musical
• Bloomer Girl (1944) – a musical
• St. Louis Woman (1946) – a musical
• House of Flowers (1954) – a musical
• Jamaica (1957) – a musical – nominated for a Tony Award for Best Musical
• Saratoga (1959) – a musical

Major Songs

Here are some of Harold Arlen's most famous songs:

• "A Sleepin' Bee"
• "Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive"
• "Any Place I Hang My Hat Is Home"
• "As Long as I Live"
• "Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea"
• "Blues in the Night"
• "Come Rain or Come Shine"
• "Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead"
• "Get Happy"
• "Down with Love"
• "Happiness Is a Thing Called Joe"
• "Hit the Road to Dreamland"
• "I Could Go On Singing"
• "If I Only Had a Brain"
• "I Gotta Right to Sing the Blues"
• "Ill Wind"
• "It's Only a Paper Moon"
• "Let's Fall in Love"
• "Lydia the Tattooed Lady"
• "My Shining Hour"
• "One for My Baby (and One More for the Road)"
• "Out of This World"
• "Over the Rainbow"
• "Stormy Weather"
• "That Old Black Magic"
• "The Man That Got Away"
• "This Time the Dream's on Me"

Films

• 2003 – Stormy Weather: The Music of Harold Arlen. This film was directed by Larry Weinstein.

Images for kids

• 

  Sheet music cover for The Wizard of Oz.

See also

In Spanish: Harold Arlen para niños