December 19 - Robert B Sherman

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On this day, in 1925, Robert Bernard Sherman was born in New York, New York. As the son of famous Tin Pan Alley songwriter Al Sherman, Robert, and his brother Richard (who would come along a couple of years later), eventually dove into the family business and elevated it to world renown status. The family moved frequently during Robert’s childhood before finally settling in Beverly Hills, California. During his high school years, Robert wrote and produced several programs for the radio and stage. One of those, Armistice and Dedication Day, raised thousands of dollars for bonds to finance World War II and caught the attention of the War Department. Robert was a mere 16 year old at the time.

In 1943, Robert talked his parents into letting him join the army when he was only 17. In April of 1945, he was wounded in the knee and would walk with a cane for the rest of his life. His list of medals for his service is fairly impressive: the Purple Heart, the Combat Infantryman Badge, two Battle Stars, an American Campaign Medal, a Good Conduct Medal and several marksmanship badges. As he convalesced from his wound in England, Robert became interested in British culture and soaked up as much history and made as many English friends as he could. He was always grateful for this period in his life since so much of his later career would center on British stories and characters.

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After his return home from the war, Robert attended Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York. He majored in English literature and painting, served as editor-in-chief of the campus newspaper and wrote two novels. His brother, Richard, also attended Bard as a music major. A few years later, the brothers were living together in an apartment in Los Angeles, struggling to create their separate masterpieces. One day, their father, Al, goaded them with a dare: I bet you two guys couldn’t pool your talents and come up with a song that some kid would give up his lunch money to buy. He was a wise one, that Al. The boys banded together for the first time and wrote the song Gold Can Buy Anything (but Love) and sold it to Gene Autry. The Sherman Brothers, as a songwriting duo, was born.

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In 1958, Robert founded his own music publishing company, Music World Corporation. The following year, the brothers had their first Top Ten hit, Tall Paul sung by Annette Funicello. A former Mouseketeer having a hit song of course attracted the attention of Walt Disney. Walt began having the Brothers write a song here and there, like the ones used in The Parent Trap. Then Walt finally got the rights to his magnum opus, Mary Poppins, and he hired Robert and Richard on as full time staff songwriters. They won two Academy Awards for Poppins, wrote the music for a whole slew of attractions (Adventure Thru Inner Space, Carousel of Progress and Journey Into Imagination to name just a few) and movies (like The Jungle Book, The Aristocats and Bedknobs and Broomsticks). The most ear wormy thing they ever wrote however, and their song that’s been played the most often, is the them to It’s A Small World. I would go so far as to bet that it will be stuck in your head for the next hour just because I mentioned it. I’m not sorry. It is a pretty good song.

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After Walt’s death, Robert and Richard stopped working full time for the Disney company (although they never really left it completely). Their first outside project was to team up with Poppins star Dick Van Dyke on the 1968 fantasy Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. Over the years they began writing screenplays for projects as well as the music. Their version of Tom Sawyer won first prize at the Moscow Film Festival in 1973. An adaptation of Cinderella titled The Slipper and the Rose was chosen for a Royal Command Performance in 1976. On stage, the Brothers wrote a musical called Over There! that was nominated for Tony Awards and was the highest grossing musical of 1974. Since then, highly successful stage versions of both Mary Poppins and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang have graced stages around the world.

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The tragedy of all the marvelous music, laughter and joy Robert and Richard brought to the world over their decades long career, is that it turns out the Sherman boys were pretty good actors as well. Modern conveniences may have kept their collaboration going, but the Brothers were, in actuality, bitter rivals who could go years without speaking to each other. Whether or not they ever actually repaired the rift between them, Robert and Richard were both inducted into the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame in 2005, given the National Medal of the Arts by President George W. Bush in 2008 and had been made official Disney Legends in 1990. In 2010, the Brothers received their own window on Mainstreet USA in Disneyland which reads “Two Brothers Tunemakers, Richard M Sherman and Robert B Sherman, proprietors, We’ll write your tunes for a song!” They also recently had a soundstage at the Burbank studios renamed in their honor

Robert B. Sherman, decorated war hero, father of four, and co-writer of more film scores for musicals than anyone else (except his brother of course) passed away on March 6, 2012 in London, England. He was 86.