George M. Cohan was a composer, vaudeville performer, and actor, known as “the father of American musical comedy”. He wrote over 1,500 songs, including “You’re a Grand Old Flag” and “Yankee Doodle Boy”. Cohan was also a founding member of ASCAP and received the Congressional Gold Medal. He died of cancer in 1942.
Actor James Cagney played George M. Cohan in one of his most popular film roles. George M. Cohan was an American composer, vaudeville performer and called “the father of American musical comedy.”
He was born on July 3, 1878 – not July 3 as his parents claimed – to an Irish-Catholic family in Providence, Rhode Island. His parents were vaudeville artists and he joined the act as soon as he could roll over in his crib. He grew up singing and dancing with his parents’ entertainment, and was soon regarded as a leading dancer.
George M. Cohan rose to fame in 1904 when his musical Little Johnny Jones premiered on Broadway. He was also one of the songwriters of Tin Pan Alley and has written over 1,500 songs, many of which are permanent staples of American culture. George M. Cohan also acted in a few films and continued to write plays almost to the end of his life. His last play, Return of the Tramp, premiered in 1940, starring Celeste Holm.
Cohan is probably now best known for his songs. They include famous tunes like “Mary’s a Grand Old Name”, “Over There”, popular during WW1, “You’re a Grand Old Flag” and of course “Yankee Doodle Boy”. His songs have been played in numerous movies, cartoons, commercials, and are everywhere in pop culture references. His influence on American music and culture is matched perhaps only by Irving Berlin.
Writing or contributing to more than 50 Broadway shows, George M. Cohan is one of America’s most highly regarded entertainers. A bronze statue of his likeness stands in Times Square in New York City, has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and was also awarded the Congressional Gold Medal by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, for his contributions to morale during the first World War. Cohan was also a founding member of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP), which still helps protect copyrights for songwriters in the United States.
George M. Cohan died of abdominal cancer on November 5, 1942. He is buried in the Bronx, New York City. Numerous articles are available online about this man who was a composer, singer, actor, dancer, playwright and his musicals are still in production.
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