Jack Yellen

Infobox Musical artist
Name = Jack Yellen


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Background = non_performing_personnel
Birth_name = Jacob Selig Yellen
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Born = birth date|1892|07|6
Raczki, Poland
Died = death date and age|1991|04|17|1892|07|6
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Occupation = Lyricist, Screenwriter
Years_active = 1915 - 1969
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Jack Selig Yellen (Jacek Jeleń) (July 6, 1892 - April 17, 1991) was a Polish-American lyricist and screenwriter.

Born in Poland, Yellen emigrated with his family to the United States when he was five years old. He grew up in Buffalo, New York and began writing songs in high school. He graduated with honors from the University of Michigan in 1913 and after graduating became a reporter for the "Buffalo Courier", continuing to write songs on the side.

Yellen's first collaborator on a song was George L. Cobb, with whom he wrote a number of Dixie songs including "Alabama Jubilee," "Are You From Dixie?," and "All Aboard for Dixieland." He is best remembered for his collaboration with composer Milton Ager. He and Ager entered the music publishing business as part owners of the Ager-Yellen-Bernstein Music Company. Yellen also worked with many other composers such as Sammy Fain and Harold Arlen.

Yellen's collaboration with vaudeville star, Sophie Tucker, for whom he was retained to write special material, produced one of Tucker's most well known songs, "My Yiddishe Momme," a song in English with some Yiddish text. Yellen wrote the lyrics which were set to music by Lew Pollack. [1]

Yellen wrote the lyrics to more than 200 popular songs of the early 20th century. Two of his most recognized songs, still popular in the 21st century, are "Happy Days Are Here Again" and "Ain't She Sweet."

Yellen's screenwriting credits included "George White's Scandals", "Pigskin Parade", "Little Miss Broadway", and "Submarine Patrol".

Yellen was on the board of ASCAP from 1951 to 1969. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1972 and the Buffalo Music Hall of Fame in 1996.

He died in Concord, New York, aged 98.

Broadway musicals

* "What's in a Name?" (1920) with music by Milton Ager
* "Rain or Shine" (1928) with music by Milton Ager
* "John Murray Anderson's Almanac" (1929)
* "Follow A Star" (1930) with music by Vivian Ellis
* "You Said It" (1931)
* "George White's Scandals of 1935"
* "George White's Scandals of 1939"
* "Boys and Girls Together" (1940)
* "Sons o' Fun" (1941)
* "Ziegfeld Follies of 1943" (1943)

Film Scores

* "The Adding Machine" 1969
* "The Affair of Susan" 1935
* "Ali Baba Goes To Town" 1937
* "Another Thin Man" 1939
* "Artistic Temper" 1932
* "Bells of Capistrano" 1942
* "Blonde Crazy" 1931
* "Broadway Melody of 1938" 1937
* "Bulldog Drummond" 1939
* "Call of The West" 1930
* "Captain January" 1936
* "Chasing Rainbows" 1930
* "The Christmas Party" 1931
* "Crashing The Gate" 1934
* "George White's Scandals" 1934 1935
* "Glad Rag Doll" 1929
* "Going Hollywood" 1933
* "Happy Landing" 1938
* "The Heart of New York" 1932
* "Hell In The Heavens" 1934
* "Hold That Co-Ed" 1938
* "Honky Tonk" 1929
* "Ice Follies of 1939"
* "King of Burlesque" 1935
* "The King of Jazz" 1930
* "Little Miss Broadway" 1938
* "Love Is News" 1937
* "My Lucky Star " 1938
* "Night and Day" 1946
* "Our Little Girl" 1935
* "Pigskin Parade" 1936
* "Rain or Shine" 1930
* "Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm 1938"
* "Sally, Irene and Mary" 1938
* "Sensations of 1945" - 1944
* "Sing, Baby, Sing" 1936
* "Submarine Patrol" 1938
* "They Learned About Women" 1930
* "This Is Heaven" 1929
* "Twentieth Century" 1934
* "Unexpected Uncle" 1941
* "Wake Up and Live" 1937
* "You Can’t Have Everything" 1937

elected Songs

* Alabama Jubilee (song) - 1915
* Down By The O-Hi-O - 1921
* There's a Garden in Hawaii with music by George B. McConnell - 1917
* Glad Rag Doll - 1929
* Louisville Lou - 1923
* Big Bad Bill (is Sweet William Now) - 1924
* Mama Goes Where Papa Goes - 1923
* Hula Lou - 1924
* Happy Feet - 1930
* Hard Hearted Hannah (The Vamp Of Savannah) - 1924
* I Wonder What's Become of Sally - 1924
* Cheatin' on Me - 1925
* In Your Green Hat - 1925
* My Yiddishe Momme - 1925 with music by Lew Pollack and a huge success for Sophie Tucker.
* Crazy Words, Crazy Tune - 1926
* Ain't She Sweet - 1927
* Happy Days Are Here Again - 1930
* Are You Havin' Any Fun? - 1939

Notes

External links

* [http://www.songwritershalloffame.org/exhibit_home_page.asp?exhibitId=317 Jack Yellen's entry at the Songwriters' Hall of Fame]
* [http://www.ibdb.com/person.asp?ID=6562 Jack Yellen's entry at the Internet Broadway Database]
* [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0947386/ Jack Yellen's entry at IMDb]