Harry Warren
Harry Warren, originally named Salvatore Antonio Guaragna, was born on December 24, 1893, in Brooklyn, New York, to Italian immigrant parents. He was a self-taught musician who initially played the accordion, drums, and later the piano. Warren left high school at 16 to join a traveling carnival band, and by 1915, he was working at Vitagraph Motion Picture Studios, where he played mood music and took on various roles, including assistant director.
Warren's songwriting career began in earnest during his service in the U.S. Navy in 1918. Over his six-decade career, he composed more than 800 songs, with over 500 published, many of which were for Hollywood films. He was particularly noted for his work with lyricists such as Al Dubin, Mack Gordon, and Johnny Mercer. Warren's music was integral to films like "42nd Street" and "Gold Diggers of 1933," and he was a key collaborator with choreographer Busby Berkeley.
He won three Academy Awards for Best Original Song with "Lullaby of Broadway," "You'll Never Know," and "On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe." His song "Chattanooga Choo Choo" was the first gold record in history. Despite his success, Warren remained relatively unknown to the public during his lifetime. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1971 and passed away on September 22, 1981, in Los Angeles, California.
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