Walter Donaldson (songwriter) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Walter Donaldson
Donaldson circa 1926
Background information
Born	(1893-02-15)February 15, 1893 New York City, United States
Died	July 15, 1947(1947-07-15) (aged 54) Santa Monica, California, United States
Occupation(s)	Composer Lyricist Publishing company entrepreneur

Walter Donaldson (born February 15, 1893 – died July 15, 1947) was a very successful American songwriter. He wrote many popular songs from the 1910s to the 1940s. Many of his songs are now considered classics. They are part of the famous collection called the Great American Songbook.

The Life of Walter Donaldson

Walter Donaldson was born in Brooklyn, New York State. His mother was a piano teacher. He started writing music for school plays when he was young. His first professional songs were published in 1915. In 1918, he had his first big hit song. It was called "The Daughter of Rosie O'Grady."

Music and War

During World War I, Walter entertained soldiers. He performed at Camp Upton in New York. His time there gave him an idea for a song. He wrote "How Ya Gonna Keep 'em Down on the Farm (After They've Seen Paree)?" This song became very popular.

Building a Career

After serving in the United States Army, Walter worked for Irving Berlin Music Company. He wrote many hit songs there until 1928. Then, he decided to start his own music company. It was officially called "Donaldson, Douglas & Gumble, Inc." But Walter Donaldson's name was always featured on the music.

Walter often worked with a lyricist named Gus Kahn. A lyricist is someone who writes the words for songs. They first worked together in 1915. Walter wrote the music, and Gus wrote the lyrics.

Walter was mostly known for writing music. But he also wrote both the words and music for many songs. Some of his big hits where he did both were "At Sundown" and "Little White Lies". He wrote about 600 songs in his career!

Hollywood and Later Life

In the late 1920s, Walter moved to Hollywood, California. He started writing and arranging music for movies. He worked on films like Glorifying the American Girl and The Great Ziegfeld.

He married Dorothy in 1935. She was an actress on the New York stage. They had two children together. Walter retired from music in 1943. He passed away four years later in Santa Monica, California. He had been ill for about a year. Walter Donaldson is buried in Holy Cross Cemetery, Brooklyn in Brooklyn.

Famous Songs by Walter Donaldson

Here are some of the well-known songs Walter Donaldson wrote:

• "At Sundown (When Love is Calling Me Home)"
• "The Army's Full of Irish (A Man from Erin Never Runs, He's Irish)"
• "Away Down East in Maine"
• "Because My Baby Don't Mean 'Maybe' Now"
• "Carolina in the Morning"
• "Can't We Fall in Love"
• "Cynthia"
• "Did I Remember"
• "Dixie Vagabond"
• "Don't Be Angry"
• "Don't Cry Frenchy, Don't Cry"
• "Down Where the South Begins"
• "Dreamy Delaware"
• "Duke of Kak-I-Ak"
• "Eight Little Letters"
• "An Ev'ning in Caroline"
• "For No Reason at All"
• "Georgia"
• "A Girlfriend of a Boyfriend of Mine"
• "Give Me Just a Little Bit of What You've Got"
• "Give Me My Mammy"
• "Goodness Gracious Agnes"
• "How Ya Gonna Keep 'em Down on the Farm (After They've Seen Paree)?"
• "Kansas City Kitty"
• "Little White Lies"
• "Love Me or Leave Me"
• "Makin' Whoopee"
• "Maybe It's the Moon"
• "Mississippi Honeymoon"
• "Mister Meadowlark"
• "My Baby Just Cares for Me"
• "My Blue Heaven"
• "My Buddy"
• "My Heart and I Decided"
• "My Mammy" (a huge hit for Al Jolson)
• "My Man from Caroline"
• "My Mom"
• "My Ohio Home"
• "My Papa Doesn't Two-Time No Time"
• "No One to Blame But Myself"
• "Out of the Dawn"
• "Sam, the Old Accordion Man"
• "Sweet Jennie Lee"
• "That Certain Party"
• "A Thousand Goodnights"
• "What Can I Say After I Say I'm Sorry?"
• "Why'd Ya Make Me Fall In Love?"
• "Without That Gal!"
• "Yes Sir, That's My Baby"
• "You're Driving Me Crazy"