Hoagy Carmichael

Hoagy Carmichael
Carmichael in 1947
Born	Hoagland Howard Carmichael[1] (1899-11-22)November 22, 1899 Bloomington, Indiana, U.S.
Died	December 27, 1981(1981-12-27) (aged 82) Rancho Mirage, California, U.S.
Occupations	Musician composer songwriter actor lawyer
Years active	1918–1981
Political party	Republican
Spouses	Ruth Meinardi ​ ​ (m. 1936; div. 1955)​ Wanda McKay ​ (m. 1977)​
Children	2
Musical career
Genres	Musical films, popular songs
Instrument(s)	Piano vocals
Musical artist
Website	hoagy.com

Hoagland Howard Carmichael (November 22, 1899 – December 27, 1981) was an American musician, composer, songwriter, actor and lawyer. Carmichael was one of the most successful Tin Pan Alley songwriters of the 1930s, and was among the first singer-songwriters in the age of mass media to utilize new communication technologies such as television, microphones, and sound recordings.

Carmichael composed several hundred songs, including 50 that achieved hit record status. He is best known for composing four of the most-recorded American songs of all time: "Stardust" (lyrics by Mitchell Parish), "Georgia on My Mind" (lyrics by Stuart Gorrell), "The Nearness of You" (lyrics by Ned Washington), and "Heart and Soul" (lyrics by Frank Loesser).^[2] He also collaborated with lyricist Johnny Mercer on "Lazybones" and "Skylark". Carmichael's "Ole Buttermilk Sky" was an Academy Award nominee in 1946, from Canyon Passage, in which he co-starred as a musician riding a mule. "In the Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening", with lyrics by Mercer, won the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1951. Carmichael also appeared as a character actor and musical performer in 14 films, hosted three musical-variety radio programs, performed on television, and wrote two autobiographies.