Composer ("How the West Was Won"), songwriter ("Make Mine Music"), choral director, conductor, arranger, singer and author, educated at Christian College and a student of Tibor Serly, Ernst Toch, Herman Hand, and Victor Young. He originated The King's Men male vocal quartet in 1929 and appeared on radio...See full bio »
The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp
(TV series)
(chorus - 203 episodes, 1955-1961)
(music by - 8 episodes, 1956-1958)
(performer: title song - 3 episodes, 1959)
(choral director - 2 episodes, 1955-1961)
(performer: theme song - 2 episodes, 1959)
(singer: theme song - 1 episode, 1959)
1962How the West Was Won
(music: "I'm Bound for the Promised Land" - uncredited, "Come Share My Life" 1962 - uncredited / lyrics: "How the West Was Won" 1962, "I'm Bound for the Promised Land" - uncredited, "Nine Hundred Miles from Home" 1962 - uncredited, "Come Share My Life" 1962 - uncredited, "On The Banks of Sacramento" 1962 - uncredited / performer: "How the West Was Won" 1962, "Shenandoah" - uncredited)
1954River of No Return
(lyrics: "River of No Return" - uncredited, "I'm Gonna File My Claim" - uncredited, "One Silver Dollar" - uncredited, "Down in the Meadow" - uncredited)
1952Stars and Stripes Forever
(writer: "My Love Is a Weeping Willow" - uncredited / lyrics: "My Love Is a Weeping Willow" - uncredited, "When It's Springtime in New York" - uncredited)
1939The Wizard of Oz
(performer: "Munchkinland Medley: 'Come Out, Come Out, Wherever You Are', 'The House Began To Pitch', 'As Mayor of the Munchkin City', 'As Coroner, I Must Aver', 'Ding Dong The Witch is Dead', 'Lullaby League', 'Lollipop Guild' and 'We Welcome You to Munchkinland'" 1939 - uncredited)
He was featured, along with Cliff Edwards (the original Jiminy Cricket), Julietta Novis and The King's Men, on Decca Records' 1940 studio cast 78-rpm album of the songs from Walt Disney''s
Pinocchio. This four-record set was later released as the reverse side of a Decca LP which also...
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His choral group, the Ken Darby Singers, sang backup for Bing Crosby on Crosby's original 78-RPM recording of "White Christmas." This version was not recorded directly from the soundtrack of
Holiday Inn, the 1942 movie for which composer Irving Berlin wrote the song. Soundtrack albums for live action films did not come into being until 1947.
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