| Sheldon Allman | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 8, 1924 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | January 22, 2002 (aged 77) Culver City, California, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actor, singer, songwriter |
| Years active | 1958–1995 |
| Spouse | Lorraine Allman |
Sheldon Allman (June 8, 1924 – January 22, 2002) was a Jewish American-born Canadian raised actor, singer, and songwriter.
He began his singing career with the Royal National Guard during his World War II service with the RCAF. Relocating to Los Angeles, he appeared in twelve movies, including such notable films as Nevada Smith, The Sons of Katie Elder, Hud and In Cold Blood. His co-stars included, respectively, Steve McQueen, Paul Newman and John Wayne. He also made appearances in numerous TV series during the 1960s and 1970s.
He was the singing voice for TV's Mister Ed, for which he also wrote and recorded "The Pretty Little Filly with the Ponytail" and "The Empty Feedbag Blues". Mr. Allman wrote longer versions of these songs, but never recorded the longer versions. He was the lyricist for the theme song to George of the Jungle ("George, George, George of the Jungle, friend to you and me! Watch out for that tree!!"). Additionally, Allman worked with Stan Worth, co-writer of the "George of the Jungle" theme, to create music for a number of game shows from Stefan Hatos-Monty Hall Productions, including the 1970s versions of Let's Make a Deal, Masquerade Party and It Pays to be Ignorant.
In addition, Allman co-wrote two comedy horror-themed stage musicals with Bobby Pickett, composer of the hit novelty song, "Monster Mash." The musicals were I'm Sorry the Bridge Is Out, You'll Have to Spend the Night and its sequel, Frankenstein Unbound (Another Monster Musical), the former of which was made into the 1995 film, Monster Mash.
He died at the age of 77 and was survived by his wife of many years, Lorraine Allman. His interment was located in Culver City's Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery.