Richard M. Sherman was a songwriter who, along with brother Robert B. Sherman (1925–2012), wrote beloved songs for Disney movies, including “It’s a Small World” and the Oscar-winning “Chim Chim Cher-ee.”
- Died: May 25, 2024 (Who else died on May 25?)
- Details of death: Died in Beverly Hills, California at the age of 95.
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Richard M. Sherman’s legacy
The son of songwriter Al Sherman (1897–1973), Sherman began working with his brother to write songs after being challenged to do so by their father. After he served in the U.S. Army for two years in the 1950s, including serving as conductor for the Army Band and glee club, Sherman began working with his older sibling in earnest to write music. Among the Sherman Brothers’ first successes was a 1964 hit for Disney legend Annette Funicello (1942–2013), “Tall Paul.”
In that same year, the Sherman Brothers wrote one of the songs that would form the backbone of their legacy. Asked to craft a song for an attraction at the New York World’s Fair that had a “Children of the World” theme, they wanted to create something simple that could easily be translated into many languages. What they came up with was “It’s a Small World,” which has become iconic. The ride was ultimately named after the song, and, after the World’s Fair, was moved to Disneyland, where it remains a crowd favorite and still plays the Sherman Brothers’ classic tune.
“It’s a Small World” was the beginning of a long collaboration between the Sherman Brothers and Disney. Next up was their work for “Mary Poppins.” The movie’s songs, written by the Sherman Brothers, are among the best-known tunes from Disney films, including “A Spoonful of Sugar,” “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious,” “Let’s Go Fly a Kite,” and the lullaby that was said to be Walt Disney’s (1901–1966) favorite, “Feed the Birds (Tuppence a Bag).” The brothers won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for “Chim Chim Cher-ee” and another for Best Original Score.
Later, the Sherman Brothers were nominated for further Oscars for their music penned for “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang,” “Bedknobs and Broomsticks,” “Tom Sawyer,” “The Slipper and the Rose,” and “The Magic of Lassie.” They also wrote music for such films as “The Jungle Book,” “The Aristocats,” “Charlotte’s Web,” and many more. The two were Tony-nominated for their 1974 musical, “Over Here!” In addition to their work for scores and soundtracks, the Sherman Brothers wrote hit songs like Funicello’s “Pineapple Princess” and “You’re Sixteen” by Johnny Burnette, covered by Ringo Starr years later.
In 1990, Sherman was named a Disney Legend. He is a member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame and was awarded the National Medal of Arts by President George W. Bush.
Notable quote
“We write for family audiences, that’s our thing. We try to write with a broad spectrum of meaning. You can listen to ‘Feed The Birds, Tuppence A Bag’ and one person will say, ‘Oh, it’s a guy that’s trying to make a pitch to buy breadcrumbs and feed pigeons with them.’ And somebody else might say, ‘Oh, maybe it’s more a song about being kind and giving a little love to people that need it.’ There’s a double way of looking at it.” — from a 1996 interview for Performing Songwriter
Tributes to Richard M. Sherman
Full obituary: The New York Times
