Richard M. Sherman, Legendary Disney Songwriter, Composer Has Died At 95
Richard M. Sherman, Legendary Disney Songwriter, Composer Has Died At 95
Teaming with his brother, they were responsible for the “It’s A Small World” song and the music of “Mary Poppins” and “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang”
It’s an even smaller world after all. Two-time Oscar-winning composer and songwriter as part of The Sherman Brothers with brother Robert, Richard M. Sherman died Saturday, May 25 at the age of 95 from what was called an age-related illness. The pair were best known as Disney’s in-house songwriters and were “responsible for more motion picture musical song scores than any other songwriting team in film history”.
Born on June 12, 1928, in New York City, Richard and his family made their way to California, specifically Beverly Hills, when he was 9, seemingly the last of several moves. He attended the schools there, graduating from the high school, and majoring in music at Bard College. He served as conductor for the United States Army band and glee club from 1953 to 1955, having been drafted. While Gene Autry was the first to record a Sherman brothers song, “Gold Can Buy You Anything But Love” in 1951, the songwriters’ big break would only come in 1958 when Annette Funicello recorded their song “Tall Paul”. The song would reach #7 on sales charts with more than 700,000 singles sold.
That caught Walt Disney’s attention, and thus hired them as staff songwriters for his studio. The first contribution they made was a song for a Funicello-starring 1961 TV movie The Horsemasters. They would end up racking up films such as The Absent-Minded Professor, the original The Parent Trap, The Sword in the Stone, That Darn Cat!, Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree, the original The Jungle Book, The Happiest Millionaire, The Aristocats, and Bedknobs and Broomsticks. Perhaps biggest of all however was Mary Poppins, for which they won two of their Oscars: Best Score – Substantially Original and Best Original Song for “Chim Chim Cher-ee.” The beloved “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” became a mainstream pop hit, entering the Billboard Hot 100 in 1965, while also creating one of Walt’s favorite songs ever, “Feed the Birds”. Richard, having survived Robert by twelve years, recorded a new rendition of the song for last year’s centennial-celebrating short Once Upon a Studio. Their work also extended to Disney’s theme parks, with “There’s a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow”, “The Tiki, Tiki, Tiki Room”, and “It’s a Small World” for their attractions, and coming back with more music for EPCOT and Tokyo Disneyland in the ‘80s. They would receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1976, be inducted as Disney Legends in 1990, and into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2005, ultimately winning three Grammys, and receiving 24 gold and platinum albums in what was for Richard a 65 year career, with 200 Disney songs for some 27 films and 24 television productions.
Their return was facilitated by having left in the early ‘70s, pursuing non-Disney film projects with music and songs for Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Snoopy Come Home, and Charlotte’s Web. About Bang Bang, Sherman said he and his brother enjoyed making the title song about the flying car. "We wanted the song to sound like the way the motor sounded," Sherman explained, "because that's the trick, the whole thing is that it backfires and goes 'bang bang.'” The song earned them another of their Oscar nominations. Their creation of the Winnie the Pooh theme means, their music was present in films as late as Christopher Robin in 2018, though they did contribute new music for 2000’s The Tigger Movie. And while not a Disney film at the time, Richard collaborated with John Debney on the song “Make Way for Tomorrow Today” for Iron Man 2.
Richard’s last-released new song before his death was “Mushka’s Lullabye”, written with composer Fabrizio Mancinelli for Andreas Deja’s 2023 animated short, Mushka and sung by soprano Holly Sedillos. His surviving family includes his wife of 66 years, Elizabeth; son Gregory and grandsons William and Matthew; daughter Victoria Wolf, son-in-law Doug Wolf, and grandchildren Mandy and Anthony. He has one surviving daughter from a previous marriage, Lynda, who has two children and three grandchildren of her own. Details for a celebration of life will be announced at a later date.
“Richard Sherman was the embodiment of what it means to be a Disney Legend, creating along with his brother Robert the beloved classics that have become a cherished part of the soundtrack of our lives,” said Disney CEO Bob Iger. “From films like Mary Poppins and The Jungle Book to attractions like ‘it’s a small world,’ the music of the Sherman Brothers has captured the hearts of generations of audiences. We are forever grateful for the mark Richard left on the world, and we extend our deepest condolences to his family.”
Source: The Walt Disney Company, NPR