Gladys Shelley
Encyclopedia
Gladys Shelley was an American lyricist and composer.
, Gladys Shelley began writing at an early age. Her first efforts were primarily poetry and before graduating from high school she had several items of her light verse published by Walter Winchell
and other newspaper columnists.
After high school, she moved to New York City, enrolling at Columbia University
and working for a time as an actress and dancer. She began writing song lyrics in the late 1930's.
. Her second song with Silver, There Shall Be No Night, had its title taken from a then-current anti-Nazi play, and was recorded by the orchestras of Duke Ellington
, Bob Chester
, and Dick Jurgens
. Over the course of her career, she penned more than 300 songs with a variety of composers, including Morton Gould
, Frank Black
, and Fred Astaire
. The Shelly-Astaire collaboration, Just Like Taking Candy From A Baby, was recorded by Fred Astaire. A 1946 musical entitled The Duchess Misbehaves, for which she wrote the book and lyrics, opened at the Adelphi Theater in Manhattan, but managed only three performances before closing.
, the owner of New Jersey's Palisades Amusement Park
, and in 1965 she wrote the music and lyrics to a radio and television jingle called Come on Over which proved to be a catchy and effective promotions device. The jingle was used until the park closed in 1971, rhyming "Palisades Amusement Park" with "swings all day and after dark."
for whom it became a signature song. Other artists covering the tune included Eydie Gorme
, Dakota Staton
, Connie Francis
, Vic Damone
, and Mel Torme
. The male versions sang the lyrics as How Did She Look?
home at age 92. Her New York Times obituary noted that the composer was a "memorable presence in her East Side neighborhood, where the sight of Ms. Shelley walking her five chihuahuas was a familiar one for many years."
Early life
Born in Lawrence, New YorkLawrence, New York
Lawrence, New York may refer to:*Lawrence, Nassau County, New York, a village*Lawrence, St. Lawrence County, New York, a town...
, Gladys Shelley began writing at an early age. Her first efforts were primarily poetry and before graduating from high school she had several items of her light verse published by Walter Winchell
Walter Winchell
Walter Winchell was an American newspaper and radio gossip commentator.-Professional career:Born Walter Weinschel in New York City, he left school in the sixth grade and started performing in a vaudeville troupe known as Gus Edwards' "Newsboys Sextet."His career in journalism was begun by posting...
and other newspaper columnists.
After high school, she moved to New York City, enrolling at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
and working for a time as an actress and dancer. She began writing song lyrics in the late 1930's.
Collaborations
In 1940, Gladys Shelley and Abner Silver penned How Did He Look? which became her first hit and most frequently recorded song, originally done in 1941 by Joan MerrillJoan Merrill
Joan Merrill was a popular singer and actress. She began her career in the 1930s on radio and later sang at nightclubs across the United States, including at the Copacabana in New York City, the Thunderbird Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada, and the Rio Cabana in Chicago...
. Her second song with Silver, There Shall Be No Night, had its title taken from a then-current anti-Nazi play, and was recorded by the orchestras of Duke Ellington
Duke Ellington
Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was an American composer, pianist, and big band leader. Ellington wrote over 1,000 compositions...
, Bob Chester
Bob Chester
Bob Chester was an American jazz and pop music bandleader and tenor saxophonist.Chester's stepfather ran General Motors's Fisher Body Works. He began his career as a sideman under Irving Aaronson, Ben Bernie, and Ben Pollack. He formed his own group in Detroit in 1939, with a Glenn...
, and Dick Jurgens
Dick Jurgens
Dick Henry Jurgens was an American swing music bandleader, who enjoyed great popularity in the late 1930s and early 1940s....
. Over the course of her career, she penned more than 300 songs with a variety of composers, including Morton Gould
Morton Gould
Morton Gould was an American composer, conductor, arranger, and pianist.Born in Richmond Hill, New York, Gould was recognized early as a child prodigy with abilities in improvisation and composition. His first composition was published at age six...
, Frank Black
Frank Black
Black Francis is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist. He is best known as the frontman of the influential alternative rock band Pixies, with whom he performs under the stage name Black Francis. Following the band's breakup in 1993, he embarked on a solo career under the name Frank Black...
, and Fred Astaire
Fred Astaire
Fred Astaire was an American film and Broadway stage dancer, choreographer, singer and actor. His stage and subsequent film career spanned a total of 76 years, during which he made 31 musical films. He was named the fifth Greatest Male Star of All Time by the American Film Institute...
. The Shelly-Astaire collaboration, Just Like Taking Candy From A Baby, was recorded by Fred Astaire. A 1946 musical entitled The Duchess Misbehaves, for which she wrote the book and lyrics, opened at the Adelphi Theater in Manhattan, but managed only three performances before closing.
Palisades Amusement Park
Gladys Shelley married Irving RosenthalIrving Rosenthal
Irving Rosenthal an amusement company owner who, along with his brother Jack Rosenthal, operated the Palisades Amusement Park near Cliffside Park and Fort Lee, New Jersey, from 1934 until its closing in 1971....
, the owner of New Jersey's Palisades Amusement Park
Palisades Amusement Park
Palisades Amusement Park was an amusement park located in Bergen County, New Jersey, across the Hudson River from New York City. It was situated atop the New Jersey Palisades lying partly in Cliffside Park and partly in Fort Lee. The park operated from 1898 until 1971, remaining one of the most...
, and in 1965 she wrote the music and lyrics to a radio and television jingle called Come on Over which proved to be a catchy and effective promotions device. The jingle was used until the park closed in 1971, rhyming "Palisades Amusement Park" with "swings all day and after dark."
Songs
Her plaintive tune, How Did He Look?, remained a New York cabaret favorite for more than sixty years and became associated with performer Mabel MercerMabel Mercer
Mabel Mercer was an English-born cabaret singer who performed in the United States, Britain, and Europe with the greats in jazz and cabaret. She was a featured performer at Chez Bricktop in Paris, owned by the hostess Bricktop, and performed in such clubs as Le Ruban Bleu, Tony's, the RSVP, the...
for whom it became a signature song. Other artists covering the tune included Eydie Gorme
Eydie Gormé
Eydie Gormé is an American singer, specializing, with her husband, Steve Lawrence, in traditional pop music, in the form of ballads and breezy swing. She has earned numerous awards, including the Grammy and the Emmy...
, Dakota Staton
Dakota Staton
Dakota Staton , also known by the Muslim name Aliyah Rabia for a period, was an American jazz vocalist who found international acclaim with the 1957 No...
, Connie Francis
Connie Francis
Connie Francis is an American pop singer of Italian heritage and the top-charting female vocalist of the 1950s and 1960s. Although her chart success waned in the second half of the 1960s, Francis remained a top concert draw...
, Vic Damone
Vic Damone
Vic Damone is an American singer and entertainer.- Early life :Damone was born Vito Rocco Farinola in Brooklyn, New York to French-Italian immigrants based in Bari, Italy—Rocco and Mamie Farinola. His father was an electrician; and his mother taught piano. His cousin was the actress and singer...
, and Mel Torme
Mel Tormé
Melvin Howard Tormé , nicknamed The Velvet Fog, was an American musician, known for his jazz singing. He was also a jazz composer and arranger, a drummer, an actor in radio, film, and television, and the author of five books...
. The male versions sang the lyrics as How Did She Look?
Death
The composer's death on December 9, 2002 was announced by the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, the agency that licensed her songs. She died at her ManhattanManhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
home at age 92. Her New York Times obituary noted that the composer was a "memorable presence in her East Side neighborhood, where the sight of Ms. Shelley walking her five chihuahuas was a familiar one for many years."
Broadway
- The Duchess Misbehaves, book and lyrics (Feb 13, 1946 - Feb 16, 1946)
- Money Mad, performer (May 24, 1937 - May 24, 1937)
- Moon Over Mulberry Street, performer (September 4, 1935 - May 1936)
- Baby Pompadour, performer (Dec 27, 1934 - Dec 1934)