Remembering Meredith Willson

It has been 30 years since composer Meredith Willson passed away on June 15, 1984, but the music and songs he left behind will remain forever. As of June 15, 2014, his most famous work, “The Music Man,” ranks as the 63rd longest running Broadway musical in wikipedia’s list of 100.

A flute and piccolo player, Willson was a member of John Philip Sousa’s band from 1921 until 1923. He went on to spend the next 5 years with the NY Philharmonic Orchestra under Arturo Toscanini. Moving to San Francisco, he worked in radio and film, composing the score for Charlie Chaplin’s “The Great Dictator” (1940) and arranging music for the score of William Wyler’s “The Little Foxes” (1941).

“The Music Man” debuted on Broadway in 1957. An instant hit, the production won five Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and ran for 1,375 performances. The cast album won the first Grammy Award for “Best Original Cast Album.” and hit number one on the Billboard charts. It remained on the charts for 245 weeks. In 1962, it became a movie with Robert Preston playing the same role he had originated on Broadway, Professor Harold Hill. Robert Preston also lent his voice to Willson’s “Chicken Fat”, the 1962 theme song for President John F. Kennedy’s youth fitness program.

It’s hard to pick the best song from “The Music Man” but three of them have become American standards — “Seventy-Six Trombones”, “Gary Indiana”, and one even the Beatles covered, “Till There Was You.” Surely, “(Ya Got) Trouble” would be in most people’s Top 5.

Willson was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1982, (the same year as Bob Dylan and Paul Simon). When you look at his profile online, you will see two notable highlights from his extensive catalog: “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas.” and songs from “The Music Man.” Paul McCartney, through his MPL Communications company, controls the rights to Willson’s song catalog.

Meredith Willson was in one Final Jeopardy! clue in June of 2002, in the category Organizations:

“Music Man” composer Meredith Willson wrote the song “Banners And Bonnets” for this organization. show

He was also in 10 Jeopardy clues. The contestants were expected to know his name in four of them.

• 2009 — Quotations from Bartlett’s ($1000): “Ya got trouble, folks, right here in River City” is listed under this lyricist’s name.
• 2007 – Potpourri ($200): In a song from Meredith Willson’s “The Music Man”, this many trombones “led the big parade”
• 2005 – This Means Trouble ($400): “There’s trouble right here in River City” in this popular Meredith Willson show
• 2002 — Iowans ($800): Iowan Meredith Willson wrote this 1957 musical set in River City, Iowa.
• 2001 – Tony-Winning Composers ($600): 1958: “The Music Man”
• 1999 — Christian Slater ($400): At age 10 Christian played Winthrop Paroo in a New York revival of this Meredith Willson musical.
• 1993 – Christmas Songs ($500): In 1951 this “Music Man” wrote “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas”
• 1993 – Broadway Musicals ($500) (Daily Double): “The Unsinkable Molly Brown” was Meredith Willson’s second musical, this was his first
• 1990 – Iowans ($1000): The film “The Music Man” had its premiere in Mason City, home town of this man, its composer
• 1985 — U. S. States ($1000): Meredith Willson modeled his “River City” on his hometown of Mason City in this state.