Jerry Herman (Celebrity In Spotlight)

Jerry Herman is an American composer/lyricist of the Broadway musical theater. He composed the scores for the hit Broadway musicals Hello, Dolly!, Mame, and La Cage aux Folles.Herman learned to play piano at an early age, and the three frequently attended Broadway musicals. His summers were spent in the Berkshire Mountains at Stissing Lake Camp, which was run by his parents, both teachers. It was there that he first became involved in theatrical production, as director of Finian's Rainbow and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn.

In 1960, Herman made his Broadway debut with the revue From A to Z, which featured contributions from newcomers Woody Allen and Fred Ebb as well.The result was his first full-fledged Broadway musical, Milk and Honey (starring Molly Picon), in 1961. Although not commercial successes, Dear World (1969) starring Angela Lansbury, Mack & Mabel (1974) starring Robert Preston and Bernadette Peters, and The Grand Tour (1979) starring Joel Grey are noted for their interesting concepts and their melodic, memorable scores.

In 1983, Herman had his third mega-hit with La Cage aux Folles starring George Hearn and Gene Barry, which broke box-office records at the Palace Theatre and earned Herman yet another Tony Award for Best Musical.His most famous composition, "Hello, Dolly!", is one of the most popular tunes ever to have originated in a Broadway musical, and was a #1 hit in the United States for Louis Armstrong, knocking The Beatles from #1 in 1964. A French recording by Petula Clark charted in the Top Ten in both Canada and France. "If He Walked into My Life" from Mame was recorded by Eydie Gormé, winning her a Grammy Award for Best Vocal Performance, Female in 1967.