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George David Weiss was an American songwriter and former President of the Songwriters Guild of America.died of natural causes.he was , 89,
(April 9, 1921, New York City, New York[1] – August 23, 2010)
Career
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He was a very prolific songwriter during the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s, with many of his songs attaining high rankings on the charts.[1] Although he worked with many collaborators, the largest proportion of his well-known songs were written with Bennie Benjamin.[1]
Weiss contributed to a number of film scores: Murder, Inc. (1960), Gidget Goes to Rome (1953), Mediterranean Holiday (1964), and Mademoiselle (1966).
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His music was recorded by singers such as Tom Jones, Mel Tormé, Elvis Presley, Dinah Washington, The Stylistics, Tennessee Ernie Ford, and Sammy Davis Jr.[1] Weiss wrote the lyrics for the Jazz standard Lullaby of Birdland, which became a huge hit for Ella Fitzgerald. In 1984 Weiss was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.
In 2006 a court settlement was reached regarding royalties for the worldwide rights of the song "The Lion Sleeps Tonight," best known as a #1 hit for The Tokens, which was based on a 1939 song by Solomon Linda. While Solomon Linda was successful, Weiss and co-writers Peretti and Creatore were not. They failed to earn any writing credit for their four new original bars of music in the 1961 hit. The case was thrown out of court based on statute of limitations.
Weiss died at age 89 on August 23, 2010, of natural causes at his home in Oldwick, New Jersey.[2]
Notable songs
- "Lullaby of Birdland" (1952) - under the pseudonym "B. Y. Forster", with music by George Shearing
- "Mr. Wonderful" (1955) - co-written by Jerry Bock and Lawrence Holofcener
- "The Lion Sleeps Tonight (1961) - tune written by Solomon Linda in 1939; lyrics rewritten in 1961 by Weiss, Luigi Creatore, and Hugo Peretti
- "Can't Help Falling in Love with You" (1962) - co-written by Luigi Creatore and Hugo Peretti
- "That Sunday, That Summer" (1963) - co-written by Joe Sherman
- "Stay With Me" (1966) - co-written by Jerry Ragovoy
- "What a Wonderful World" (1968) - co-written by Bob Thiele
- "Let's Put It All Together" - co-written by Luigi Creatore and Hugo Peretti
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