The Other Gershwin

By Sheldon Harnick
Date: December 5, 1993

As a theater lyricist working in the waning years of the 20th century, I can only look back with envy, incredulity and melancholy at the flourishing state of the Broadway theater in the 1920's. In the "record-breaking Christmas week" of 1927, according to Robert Kimball, the capable and enterprising editor of "The Complete Lyrics of Ira Gershwin," "20 offerings premiered during a seven-night period, 11 on the evening of Dec. 26."

Ira Gershwin, only 24 years old at the beginning of the 20's, was in the right place at the right time: lyricists who could write effectively for the musical theater were in demand. In the years 1920-29 he had the opportunity, astounding by today's standards, to contribute more than 275 lyrics to some 30 musicals, with music by a dozen composers, including his younger brother George. ...


The online article omits a photo, "Ira Gershwin at work in the Gotham Hotel in New York, 1939."