1942 sheet music cover, "At Last", as recorded by Glenn Miller and His Orchestra from the movieOrchestra Wives, Leo Feist, New York.
Mack Gordon (bornMorris Gittler; June 21, 1904 – February 28, 1959)[1] was an Americanlyricist forthe stage andfilm. He was nominated for the best original songOscar nine times in 11 years, including five consecutive years between 1940 and 1944, and won the award once, for "You'll Never Know".[2] That song, along with "The More I See You", has proved among his most enduring, and remains popular in films and television commercials to this day. "At Last" is another of his best-known songs.
OfJewish heritage, Gordon was born inGrodno (modern-day westernBelarus), then part of theRussian Empire. He emigrated with his mother and older brother to New York City in May 1907;[3] the ship they sailed on was the S/SBremen; their destination was to his father inGuttenberg, New Jersey. Gordon appeared invaudeville as an actor and singer in the late 1920s and early 1930s, but his songwriting talents were always paramount.[3]
He formed a partnership with EnglishpianistHarry Revel that lasted throughout the 1930s.[3] In the 1940s he worked with a string of other composers includingHarry Warren.[3] Gordon was active in the Hollywood chapter ofASCAP and according to fellow songwriterFrank Loesser, frequently the most passionate and voluble at their meetings.[4]
^"Mack Gordon, 54, Lyricist, Is Dead".The New York Times. March 1, 1959. p. 86.
^ab"Mack Gordon".Academy Awards Database. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Archived fromthe original on July 17, 2013. RetrievedJuly 16, 2013.
^Loesser, Susan (1993).:A Most Remarkable Fella: Frank Loesser and the Guys and Dolls in His Life. New York: Donald I. Fine.ISBN0-634-00927-3, quoting from a contemporary letter of his to Lynn Loesser, August 1937, p. 34, n.12.
