Richard Whiting

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Richard A. Whiting (November 12, 1891 – February 10, 1938) was a composer of popular songs. He was born in Peoria, Illinois, and grew up in Detroit, Michigan. He attended the Harvard Military School in Los Angeles, California. Upon his graduation, Whiting began his career as a staff writer for various music publishers. In 1912, he became a personal manager. In 1919, he moved to Hollywood and wrote a number of film scores. He collaborated with BG DeSylva, Ray Egan, Johnny Mercer, Neil Moret, Leo Robin, Gus Kahn, and Sidney Clare, to produce a number of hits (listed below). He also wrote a number of scores for Broadway plays. A tribute to Whiting's music along with a medley of his best-known songs formed part of the 1980 Broadway musical A Day in Hollywood / A Night in the Ukraine. He was the father of singer/actress Margaret Whiting and actress Barbara Whiting Smith, and the grandson of Rep. Richard H. Whiting. In 1938, he died from a heart attack in Beverly Hills, California, aged 46, at the height of his career. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.

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