Gene Buck
Encyclopedia
Edward Eugene Buck was an American illustrator of sheet music
, musical theater lyricist
, and president of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP).
, Edward H. Pfeiffer, and Jerome H. Remick
. His cover illustrations had a personal touch and showed art deco
and art nouveau
elements. Dean Cornwell
called him "the first artist I ever copied". By 1910 Buck was writing lyrics for composer Dave Stamper
; his first hit was "Daddy has a Sweetheart, and Mother is her Name". He wrote about 500 songs, including "In the Cool of the Evening", "No Foolin'", "Garden of My Dreams", "Someone, Someday, Somewhere", and "Hello, 'Frisco". After 1914 he gave up illustration due to his failing eyesight.
, first on the Ziegfeld Follies
(1912–26) and then originating the Midnight Frolics (1914–26), writing skit
s and lyrics and acting as talent scout. In the August 1915 Frolic he gave Will Rogers
a break, permitting him to introduce topical humour into his act despite Ziegfeld's misgivings. He also discovered Ed Wynn
. In 1919, he persuaded Joseph Urban
to design the sets for the Follies. In 1926, Rogers dubbed Buck "the Frank W. Stearns of the Ziegfeld Administration".
at Great Neck, and may have inspired elements of The Great Gatsby
. Ring Lardner
, who collaborated with Buck on several plays, called Buck's living room "the Yale Bowl
— with lamps". Buck was also a friend of O. O. McIntyre
.
In 1927 Buck bought the Waldorf Theatre, renaming it the Gene Buck Waldorf, and producing and directing his own musical Take the Air there. He collaborated with Mischa Elman and Augustus Thomas
on an operetta
.
when radio stations demanded reduced performance royalties. The relative failure of the boycott precipitated his being voted out as president. Before this, Buck appointed an ASCAP committee which in 1943 produced a revised schedule of songwriter payment levels; the schedule was dubbed the "Ahlert Plan" after Buck's successor as ASCAP president. He became president of the Catholic Actors' Guild of America in 1944.
.
Sheet music
Sheet music is a hand-written or printed form of music notation that uses modern musical symbols; like its analogs—books, pamphlets, etc.—the medium of sheet music typically is paper , although the access to musical notation in recent years includes also presentation on computer screens...
, musical theater lyricist
Lyricist
A lyricist is a songwriter who specializes in lyrics. A singer who writes the lyrics to songs is a singer-lyricist. This differentiates from a singer-composer, who composes the song's melody.-Collaboration:...
, and president of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP).
Early career
Buck was born in Detroit, growing up in in Corktown. He studied at Detroit Art Academy, which had been founded by Joseph Gies and Francis P. Paulus. He illustrated for music publishers Ted SnyderTed Snyder
Theodore Frank Snyder , was a U.S. composer, lyricist, and music publisher . His hits include "The Sheik of Araby" and "Who's Sorry Now?" . In 1970, he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame...
, Edward H. Pfeiffer, and Jerome H. Remick
Jerome H. Remick
__notoc__Jerome Hosmer Remick , was a Detroit music publisher, philanthropist and businessman from the late 19th century to the early 20th century.-Life and career:...
. His cover illustrations had a personal touch and showed art deco
Art Deco
Art deco , or deco, is an eclectic artistic and design style that began in Paris in the 1920s and flourished internationally throughout the 1930s, into the World War II era. The style influenced all areas of design, including architecture and interior design, industrial design, fashion and...
and art nouveau
Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau is an international philosophy and style of art, architecture and applied art—especially the decorative arts—that were most popular during 1890–1910. The name "Art Nouveau" is French for "new art"...
elements. Dean Cornwell
Dean Cornwell
Dean Cornwell was an American illustrator and muralist. His oil paintings were frequently featured in popular magazines and books as literary illustrations, advertisements, and posters promoting the war effort. Throughout the first half of the 20th century he was a dominant presence in American...
called him "the first artist I ever copied". By 1910 Buck was writing lyrics for composer Dave Stamper
Dave Stamper
Dave Stamper was an American songwriter of the Tin Pan Alley and vaudeville eras, a contributor to twenty-one editions of the Ziegfeld Follies, writer for the Fox Film Corporation, and composer of more than one thousand songs, in spite of never learning to read or write traditional music notation...
; his first hit was "Daddy has a Sweetheart, and Mother is her Name". He wrote about 500 songs, including "In the Cool of the Evening", "No Foolin'", "Garden of My Dreams", "Someone, Someday, Somewhere", and "Hello, 'Frisco". After 1914 he gave up illustration due to his failing eyesight.
Ziegfeld
Buck collaborated with Florenz ZiegfeldFlorenz Ziegfeld
Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr. , , was an American Broadway impresario, notable for his series of theatrical revues, the Ziegfeld Follies , inspired by the Folies Bergère of Paris. He also produced the musical Show Boat...
, first on the Ziegfeld Follies
Ziegfeld Follies
The Ziegfeld Follies were a series of elaborate theatrical productions on Broadway in New York City from 1907 through 1931. They became a radio program in 1932 and 1936 as The Ziegfeld Follies of the Air....
(1912–26) and then originating the Midnight Frolics (1914–26), writing skit
Sketch comedy
A sketch comedy consists of a series of short comedy scenes or vignettes, called "sketches," commonly between one and ten minutes long. Such sketches are performed by a group of comic actors or comedians, either on stage or through an audio and/or visual medium such as broadcasting...
s and lyrics and acting as talent scout. In the August 1915 Frolic he gave Will Rogers
Will Rogers
William "Will" Penn Adair Rogers was an American cowboy, comedian, humorist, social commentator, vaudeville performer, film actor, and one of the world's best-known celebrities in the 1920s and 1930s....
a break, permitting him to introduce topical humour into his act despite Ziegfeld's misgivings. He also discovered Ed Wynn
Ed Wynn
Ed Wynn was a popular American comedian and actor noted for his Perfect Fool comedy character, his pioneering radio show of the 1930s, and his later career as a dramatic actor....
. In 1919, he persuaded Joseph Urban
Joseph Urban
Joseph Urban Born in Vienna, Austria, died in New York City, trained as an architect, known also for his theatrical design and his early illustrations of children's books....
to design the sets for the Follies. In 1926, Rogers dubbed Buck "the Frank W. Stearns of the Ziegfeld Administration".
Later career
Buck became wealthy and had a luxurious lifestyle. He was a neighbor of F. Scott FitzgeraldF. Scott Fitzgerald
Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald was an American author of novels and short stories, whose works are the paradigm writings of the Jazz Age, a term he coined himself. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest American writers of the 20th century. Fitzgerald is considered a member of the "Lost...
at Great Neck, and may have inspired elements of The Great Gatsby
The Great Gatsby
The Great Gatsby is a novel by the American author F. Scott Fitzgerald. First published in1925, it is set on Long Island's North Shore and in New York City from spring to autumn of 1922....
. Ring Lardner
Ring Lardner
Ringgold Wilmer Lardner was an American sports columnist and short story writer best known for his satirical takes on the sports world, marriage, and the theatre.-Personal life:...
, who collaborated with Buck on several plays, called Buck's living room "the Yale Bowl
Yale Bowl
The Yale Bowl is a football stadium in New Haven, Connecticut on the border of West Haven, about 1½ miles west of Yale's main campus. Completed in 1914, the stadium seats 61,446, reduced by renovations from the original capacity of 70,869...
— with lamps". Buck was also a friend of O. O. McIntyre
O. O. McIntyre
Oscar Odd McIntyre was a famed New York newspaper columnist of the 1920s and 1930s who cleverly combined a small town point of view with urban sophistication...
.
In 1927 Buck bought the Waldorf Theatre, renaming it the Gene Buck Waldorf, and producing and directing his own musical Take the Air there. He collaborated with Mischa Elman and Augustus Thomas
Augustus Thomas
Augustus Thomas was an American playwright, born in St. Louis, Missouri. The son of a doctor, he worked a number of jobs including a page in the 41st Congress, studying law and gaining some practical railway work experience before he turned to journalism and became editor of the Kansas City Mirror...
on an operetta
Operetta
Operetta is a genre of light opera, light in terms both of music and subject matter. It is also closely related, in English-language works, to forms of musical theatre.-Origins:...
.
ASCAP
Buck was president of ASCAP from 1925 to 1942, an era in which the growing popularity of radio was hitting songwriters' previously primary market for sheet music. His tenure also coincided with several anti-trust investigations by the US government, and the 1941 ASCAP boycottASCAP boycott
The ASCAP boycott was a boycott of ASCAP by radio broadcasters due to license fees.Between 1931 and 1939, ASCAP increased roayalty rates charged to broadcasters some 448%. In 1941, when ASCAP tried to double its license fees, radio broadcasters formed a boycott of ASCAP and founded a competing...
when radio stations demanded reduced performance royalties. The relative failure of the boycott precipitated his being voted out as president. Before this, Buck appointed an ASCAP committee which in 1943 produced a revised schedule of songwriter payment levels; the schedule was dubbed the "Ahlert Plan" after Buck's successor as ASCAP president. He became president of the Catholic Actors' Guild of America in 1944.
Personal life
Buck married actress Helen Falconer (d.1968) in a Catholic ceremony in New York City on 2 October 1919. He died after an emergency operation. His son Gene Buck, Jr was an assistant in 1947 on A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's CourtA Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1949 film)
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court is a 1949 musical comedy film adaptation of the Mark Twain novel of the same name that was distributed by Paramount Pictures.-Plot:...
.
Further reading
- Alva Johnston "Profiles: Czar of Song", The New YorkerThe New YorkerThe New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
:
External links
- Sheet music with covers or lyrics by Gene Buck E. Azalia Hackley Collection of the Detroit Public LibraryDetroit Public LibraryThe Detroit Public Library is the second largest library system in Michigan by volumes held , and is the 20th largest library system in the United States. It is composed of a Main Library on Woodward Avenue, which houses DPL administration offices, and twenty-three branch locations across the city...
- Gene Buck National Jukebox recordings