Con Conrad

Con Conrad
Birth name Conrad K. Dober
Born June 18, 1891
Origin New York City, United States
Died September 28, 1938 (aged 47)
Van Nuys, California, United States
Occupation(s) Songwriter

Con Conrad (June 18, 1891 – September 28, 1938) was an American songwriter and producer.

Biography

Con Conrad was born Conrad K. Dober in New York City. He published his first song, "Down in Dear Old New Orleans", in 1912. Conrad produced the Broadway show The Honeymoon Express, starring Al Jolson, in 1913. By 1918, Conrad was writing and publishing with Henry Waterson and had his first major hit in 1920 with the song Margie. Over the next several years, he would also be responsible for such standards as "Ma! He's Making Eyes at Me", "You've Got to See Your Mama Every Night", "Memory Lane", "Lonesome and Sorry", "Palesteena" and "Come on Spark Plug".[1]

In 1923 Conrad focused on the stage and wrote the scores for the Broadway shows: The Greenwich Village Follies, Moonlight, Betty Lee, Kitty’s Kisses and Americana. [1] In 1924 the Longacre Theatre staged the small musical Moonlight, with a score by Conrad and William B. Friedlander. The next year Conrad and Friedlander's Mercenary Mary was presented at the Longacre.[2] In 1929 Conrad moved to Hollywood after losing all of his money on unsuccessful shows. There he worked on films such as: Fox Movietone Follies, Palmy Days, The Gay Divorcee and Here’s to Romance.[1]

Conrad received the first Academy Award for Best Song for The Continental in 1934 along with collaborator Herb Magidson. He died four years later in Van Nuys, California.[1]

His spouse was actress Francine Larrimore.

Conrad was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970.[1]

Notes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 "Con Conrad". Songwriters Hall of Fame. Retrieved 27 April 2012.
  2. ↑ Bloom, Ken (2007). The Routledge Guide to Broadway. Taylor & Francis. p. 151. ISBN 978-0-415-97380-9. Retrieved 2014-05-26.

External links