Paul Williams (songwriter)

Infobox musical artist
Name = Paul Williams
Background = solo_singer
Birth name = Paul Hamilton Williams
Born = birth date|1940|9|19| mf=y, Nebraska
Instrument = Vocals, guitar, keyboards
Genre = Folk, Pop Folk, Pop,
Occupation = Singer-songwriter, actor, writer, humanitarian
Latest album = "Love Wants to Dance"
Notable albums = "Just an Old Fashioned Love Song", "Here Comes Inspiration","Phantom of the Paradise", "A&M Greatest Hits"
Notable songs = "Rainbow Connection", "We've Only Just Begun", "Evergreen", "You and Me Against the World", "Love Dance", "Just an Old Fashioned Love Song", "Family of Man"
URL = http://paulwilliamsconnection.com/

Paul Hamilton Williams (born September 19 1940, in Omaha, Nebraska, USA) is an American musician, composer, songwriter and actor.

Musical career

Williams is responsible for a number of enduring pop hits from the 1970s, including "(Just an) Old Fashioned Love Song", a U.S. top-ten hit for the band Three Dog Night in late 1971 which reached #4, and a number of Carpenters hits, most notably "We've Only Just Begun", which has since become a cover-band standard and "de rigueur" for weddings throughout North America. An early collaboration with Roger Nichols, "Someday Man", was covered by The Monkees (a group for which he auditioned but was not cast [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_g1epc/is_bio/ai_2419200851] ) on a 1969 single, and was the first Monkees' release not published by Screen Gems.

A frequent cowriter of Williams was musician Kenneth Ascher; their songs together included the popular children's favorite "The Rainbow Connection", sung by Kermit the Frog in "The Muppet Movie". Most recently, he collaborated with Scissor Sisters on their second album, "Ta-Dah".Fact|date=November 2007

Williams has worked on the music of a number of films, including writing and singing on "Bugsy Malone".Fact|date=November 2007 He wrote the music for a musical production of "Happy Days" that debuted in 2007.Fact|date=November 2007

He is a member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame, [cite web |title=Songwriters Hall of Fame Bio |url=http://www.songwritershalloffame.org/exhibit_bio.asp?exhibitId=185 |accessdate=2008-02-08 ] and his songs have been performed by both pop and country music artists. He has won one Academy Award for a song (Evergreen) from "A Star Is Born" and has been nominated for several others. [cite web |title=Academy Awards Database |url=http://awardsdatabase.oscars.org/ampas_awards/BasicSearch?action=searchLink&displayType=6&BSNominationID=44449 |accessdate=2008-02-08 , two Grammy AwardsFact|date=November 2007 and several Golden Globe Awards cite web |title=Golden Globes Database |url=http://www.goldenglobes.org/browse/member/29890 |accessdate=2008-02-08 ]

Film and television career

Although predominantly known for his music, Paul Williams is also an actor, appearing in films and many television guest appearances, notably as the Faustian record producer Swan in the cult film "Phantom of the Paradise", a rock and roll remake of "Phantom of the Opera", and as Virgil, the genius orangutan in "Battle for the Planet of the Apes". His most recognizable role is "Little Enos Burdette" in "Smokey and the Bandit". He also played Miguelito Loveless Jr. in "The Wild Wild West Revisited", a reunion movie of the original "Wild Wild West".

Williams worked closely with Jim Henson's Henson Productions on "The Muppet Movie", most specifically on the soundtrack, and even had a cameo in the movie as the piano player in the nightclub where Kermit the Frog meets Fozzie Bear.

He provided the voice of The Penguin in "".

He also had a role in as Prelate Koru of the Qomar Planetary Alliance, a race technologically superior to the Federation but lacking musical ability.

Personal life

Paul Williams is married to writer Mariana Williams, and has two children, Sarah and Cole. His brothers are the late John Williams, a NASA rocket scientist, and Mentor Williams (fiancé of country legend Lynn Anderson), a successful songwriter in his own right who penned Dobie Gray's 1972 hit, "Drift Away."

Williams has been active in the field of recovery from addictions.

ongwriter career

Albums

* "Words & Music"
* "The Holy Mackerel"
* "We've Only Just Begun"
* "Someday Man"
* "Just An Old Fashioned Love Song"
* "Life Goes On"
* "Here Comes Inspiration"
* "A Little Bit Of Love"
* "Phantom Of The Paradise"
* "Ordinary Fool"
* "A Little On The Windy Side"
* "Crazy For Loving You"
* "The Muppet Movie (1979)

Notable songs

* "We've Only Just Begun"
* "Rainy Days and Mondays"
* "I Won't Last a Day Without You"
* "What Would They Say"
* "Someday Man"
* "Flash"
* "To Put Up With You"
* "When the River Meets the Sea"
* "Rainbow Connection"
* "(Just An) Old Fashioned Love Song"
* "The Family Of Man"
* "The Hell of It"
* "One More Angel"
* "Theme to the Love Boat"
* "Evergreen (Love Theme from A Star Is Born)"
* "Let Me Be the One"
* "You and Me Against the World"
* "Out In The Country"
* "Sad Song (That Used to Be Our Song)"
* "Faust"
* "Don't Call It Love"
* "Moonlight Becomes You"
* "You're Gone"

Film music

* "Cinderella Liberty", 1973
* "Thunderbolt and Lightfoot", 1974
* "Phantom of the Paradise", 1974
* "The Day of the Locust", 1975
* "Bugsy Malone", 1975
* "A Star Is Born", 1976
* "One on One", 1977
* "Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas, 1977
* "The End", 1978
* "Agatha", 1979
* "", 1979
* "The Muppet Movie", 1979
* "The Secret of NIMH", 1982
* "Ishtar", 1987
* "The Muppet Christmas Carol", 1992

Acting career

Movies

* "The Loved One", 1965
* "The Chase", 1966
* "Watermelon Man", 1970
* "Battle for the Planet of the Apes", 1973
* "Phantom of the Paradise", 1974
* "Smokey and the Bandit", 1977, as Little Enos, a recurring part
* "The Cheap Detective", 1978
* "The Muppet Movie", 1979
* "Smokey and the Bandit II", 1980
* "Smokey and the Bandit Part 3", 1983
* "The Doors", 1991
* "Headless Body in Topless Bar", 1995
* "The Rules of Attraction", 2002
* "", 2004, as Lord Harmony
* "Georgia Rule", 2007

Plays

* "Under the Sycamore Tree"
* "Tru on Broadway", 1989

Television

He made numerous television appearances in the 1970s and 1980s, including guest appearances on "Hawaii Five-O", "Match Game '79", "The Love Boat", "The Hardy Boys", "The Odd Couple", "The Muppet Show", "The Fall Guy", and "The Gong Show". He has also guest-starred in the Babylon 5 episode entitled "Acts of Sacrifice" (Season 2 Episode 12) as Taq, the aide to Correlilmurzon an alien ambassador whose species finalizes treaties and agreements by having sex with the other signees. In a bit of subtle irony, Williams also appeared in the episode as the leader of a planet that has never heard music before. Williams appeared on an episode of "Picket Fences" as the brother of the just deceased Ginny Weedon (Zelda Rubinstein). He starred as "Ferdinand the Bull" in a musical 1/2 hour TV production of the same name written by the Sherman Brothers.In October, 1980 he was host of the "Mickey Mouse Club 25th Anniversary Special" on NBC-TV. He stated that he tried out for the show in early 1955 and was turned down.

He is also known as the voice of the Penguin in "."

He also starred as Professor Williams in an episode of Dexter's Laboratory, entitled, "Just An Old Fashioned Lab Song", and, also as himself, in an episode of "The Odd Couple".

Television

*"Hawaii Five-O"
*"The Love Boat"
*"The McLean Stevenson Show"
*"Match Game"
*"The Gong Show"
*"It Takes Two"
*"Sugar Time!"
*"Baretta"
*"Emmet Otter's Jug Band Christmas", produced by Jim Henson
*"The Muppet Show"
*"The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson"
*"The Brady Bunch Hour"
*"The Donny & Marie Show"
*"The Odd Couple ~ Season 5 1974-1974" (Episode 101: The Paul Williams Show / Germany: Ein Lied für Edna)
*"Fantasy Island--Man who wanted to be Don Quixote"
*"Babylon 5"
*""

External links

* [http://paulwilliamsconnection.com/ Paul Williams Connection — site includes biography, discography, acting bio, photos, media downloads any thing and everything Paul Williams including information on service organizations.]
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* [http://www.paulwilliams.co.uk/ Paul Williams' Music & Acting Page]
* [http://www.onamrecords.com/gallery/view/Paul%Williams Paul Williams on A&M Records]
* [http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Academy/1127/People/evergree.htm Interview]
* [http://www.emmetotter.com 30th Anniversary Emmet Otter Tribute CD]
* [http://www.songfacts.com/int/2007/06/paul-williams.html Songfacts Interview]
* [http://www.songwritershalloffame.org/exhibit_home_page.asp?exhibitId=185 Songwriters Hall of Fame Biography]