Latest news with #TheWindmillsofYourMind
Mint
19-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Mint
Alan Bergman dies at 99: Oscar-winning lyricist of ‘The Way We Were' worked with Frank Sinatra, Barbra Streisand
Oscar-winning lyricist Alan Bergman, who delivered classics such as 'The Windmills of Your Mind,' passed away at the age of 99. The celebrated writer who left a significant mark in the music industry with 'The Windmills of Your Mind,' 'Nice 'n' Easy' and 'You Don't Bring Me Flowers' breathed his last on July 18. He collaborated with several artists, including Frank Sinatra, Michael Jackson, Tony Bennett and Barbra Streisand.
USA Today
19-07-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Alan Bergman, Oscar-winning songwriter for Frank Sinatra and Barbra Streisand, dies at 99
Alan Bergman wrote a song with his future wife on the day they first met. Over the next 60 years, they never stopped making music together. Bergman was one half of one of the greatest American songwriting duos. The other half was his wife Marilyn, who died in 2022. On July 17, Alan Bergman died at 99, family spokesperson Ken Sunshine told Reuters. Together, the Bergmans wrote the lyrics for "The Way We Were" and "The Windmills of Your Mind," tunes for the film "Yentl," and the theme songs for 1970s television comedies "Maude," "Alice" and "Good Times." "It was a terrible song, but we loved the process," Bergman said in 2011 of that first collaboration. "And from that day on, we've been writing together." The songwriting team went on to win three Oscars, four Emmys and two Grammy awards, and to be inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1980. Their lyrics were set to the music of composers including Michel Legrand, Marvin Hamlisch, John Williams and Quincy Jones. Singers ranging from Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra to Johnny Mathis, Barbra Streisand and Sting recorded their songs. Johnny Mercer of 'Moon River' fame mentored Bergman Alan Bergman was born in September 1925 in Brooklyn, New York, in the same hospital where his wife was born a few years later. But the couple didn't meet until 1956, when they were introduced by the composer Lew Spence in Los Angeles. The couple married in 1958 and had one daughter. Bergman wrote his first song when he was 13 years old and continued to pen lyrics into his 90s, after his wife's death. The song "Wherever I May Go (for Marilyn)" was a tribute to her. Bergman studied at the University of North Carolina and completed a Master's degree in music at the University of California, Los Angeles, where he met songwriter Johnny Mercer. Mercer, who wrote the lyrics of "Moon River" for the film "Breakfast at Tiffany's" in 1961, became his mentor. Despite his desire to write songs, Bergman first worked as a TV producer in Philadelphia. At Mercer's urging, he moved to California in the 1950s. "I was writing both music and lyrics in those days, and he would listen to what I was writing and critique it and encourage me," Bergman told JazzTimes magazine in 2024. "I would not be here today without him. He was a great influence." Bergman liked to use a baseball analogy to explain the couple's writing process — pitching and catching ideas back and forth. He preferred to have the music before he began to write the lyrics. Composers would leave their compositions with the couple. They would then write words that fit the notes. "We believe that words are at the tips of those notes and it's our job to find them," he told NPR in 2011. "That's the adventure." Alan Bergman, wife Marilyn Bergman's big break came on Frank Sinatra's 'Nice 'n' Easy' "Yellow Bird" was the duo's first money-making song, but their big break came with Frank Sinatra's 1960 album "Nice 'n' Easy." The crooner became a friend of the couple. He referred to them as "the kids." They had another career breakthrough when they worked with composer and producer Quincy Jones in 1967 on the song "In the Heat of the Night," for the film of the same name. They won their first Academy Award for best original song for writing "The Windmills of Your Mind" the following year, with Michel Legrand, for the film "The Thomas Crown Affair." They were awarded another Oscar in 1974 for "The Way We Were" with Marvin Hamlisch, as well as a Grammy for Song of the Year in 1975. In 1983, the couple were the first songwriters to have written three of the five Oscar-nominated songs. Two years later they took home their third Academy Award for "Yentl," starring Barbra Streisand. The singer became a friend and frequent interpreter of their music, recording more than 50 of their songs. She released the album "What Matters Most" as a tribute to the Bergmans and their music. The couple's Emmys included awards for the TV movies "Queen of the Stardust Ballroom" (1975) and "Sybil" (1977), and the song "Ordinary Miracles" from the 1995 Streisand special "Barbra: The Concert."
Los Angeles Times
18-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
Alan Bergman, Oscar-winning ‘The Way We Were' and ‘The Windmills of Your Mind' lyricist, dies at 99
Alan Bergman, the decorated lyricist who over the course of seven decades penned songs including 'The Windmills of Your Mind,' 'The Way We Were,' and 'You Don't Bring Me Flowers' with wife Marilyn Bergman, has died. He was 99. Bergman died late Thursday evening in his home in Los Angeles, family spokesperson Ken Sunshine confirmed in a statement to The Times on Friday. The songwriter 'suffered from respiratory issues' in recent months but remained steadfast in his songwriting 'till the very end.' A Brooklyn native, Bergman was best known for his collaborations with his wife, Marilyn, which spanned music, television and film. The husband and wife, after meeting through composer Lew Spence, married in 1958. Together, they penned music for a variety of high-profile acts including Frank Sinatra, Ray Charles, Quincy Jones, John Williams and Barbra Streisand, with the last eventually becoming the couple's muse. The Bergmans were three-time Oscar winners. The couple won their first Oscar in 1969 for the moody 'Windmills of Your Mind,' featured in 'The Thomas Crown Affair,' shared with French composer Michel Legrand. Their second and third Oscar wins stemmed from works with Streisand: the title song from 'The Way We Were' in 1974 (shared with Marvin Hamlisch) and in 1984 for the score of 'Yentl,' shared with Legrand. The composers and their work were consistent contenders at the Oscars, with their contributions to films 'The Happy Ending,' 'Tootsie,' 'Yes, Giorgio' and the 1995 remake of Billy Wilder's 'Sabrina' also receiving nominations from the academy. On the small screen, the Bergmans left their personal touch on numerous TV series from the 1970s to the 1990s, providing the theme music for shows including 'Good Times,' 'Alice,' 'In the Heat of the Night' and Norman Lear's 'Maude.' In addition to Oscars, the Bergmans also won four Emmys, two Golden Globes and two Grammys, including the song of the year award for 'The Way We Were.' Alan Bergman, born Sept. 11, 1925 in Brooklyn, was a son of a salesman and knew from an early age that songwriting was his passion. He graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and pursued his graduate studies in music at UCLA. He briefly worked as a television director for Philadelphia station WCAU-TV but returned to Los Angeles to fully pursue songwriting, at the behest of mentor Johnny Mercer. Alan and Marilyn Bergman are members of the Songwriters Hall of Fame, which awarded the duo its Johnny Mercer Award in 1997. They also received the Grammy Trustee Award for lifetime achievement, the National Academy of Songwriters Lifetime Achievement Award, the National Music Publishers Assn. Lifetime Achievement Award and honorary doctorates from Berklee College of Music and the University of Massachusetts. In 2011, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill honored Bergman with a distinguished alumnus award. Marilyn Bergman died in January 2022 of respiratory failure at 93. After her death, Alan continued working, most recently collaborating with jazz guitarist Pat Metheny, who will record his nine songs co-written with Bergman later this year for an upcoming album. Alan Bergman is survived by his daughter Julie Bergman and granddaughter Emily Sender. He will be laid to rest at a private graveside burial. Ruth Price's Jazz Bakery announced earlier this month it would celebrate Bergman's 100th birthday with a tribute concert at Santa Monica's Broad Stage in September. The performance will go on as planned, The Times has learned. The family ask that donations be made in Bergman's name to the ASCAP Foundation Alan and Marilyn Bergman Lyric Award and the Johnny Mercer Foundation. Times pop music critic Mikael Wood contributed to this report.
Straits Times
18-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Straits Times
Alan Bergman, Oscar-winning lyricist behind The Way We Were, dies at 99
Oscar winning songwriters Alan and Marilyn Bergman arrive at the 26th annual ASCAP Pop Music Awards in Hollywood, California on April 22, 2009. NEW YORK - Alan Bergman wrote a song with his future wife on the day they first met. Over the next 60 years they never stopped making music together. Bergman was one half of one of the greatest American songwriting duos. The other was his wife Marilyn, who died in 2022. Together, the couple wrote the lyrics for The Way We Were and The Windmills of Your Mind, tunes for the film Yentl, and the theme songs for 1970s television comedies Maude, Alice and Good Times. 'It was a terrible song, but we loved the process,' Bergman said in 2011 of that first collaboration. 'And from that day on, we've been writing together.' The songwriting team went on to win three Oscars, four Emmys and two Grammy awards, and to be inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1980. Their lyrics were set to the music of composers including Michel Legrand, Marvin Hamlisch, John Williams and Quincy Jones. Singers ranging from Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra to Johnny Mathis, Barbra Streisand and Sting recorded their songs. Bergman died on July 17, aged 99, family spokesperson Ken Sunshine told Reuters. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Critical infrastructure in S'pore under attack by cyber espionage group: Shanmugam Singapore What is UNC3886, the group that attacked Singapore's critical information infrastructure? 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'You could look at this, like, that's how committed Alan is to the relationship and how committed he is to songwriting.' Alan Bergman was born in September 1925 in Brooklyn, New York in the same hospital as his wife a few years later. But the couple didn't meet until 1956 when they were introduced by the composer Lew Spence in Los Angeles. Bergman studied at the University of North Carolina and completed a Master's degree in music at the University of California, Los Angeles, where he met songwriter Johnny Mercer. Mercer, who wrote the lyrics of Moon River for the film Breakfast at Tiffany's in 1961, became his mentor. Despite his desire to write songs, Bergman first worked as a TV producer in Philadelphia. At Mercer's urging he moved to California in the 1950s. 'I was writing both music and lyrics in those days, and he would listen to what I was writing and critique it and encourage me,' Bergman told JazzTimes magazine last year. 'I would not be here today without him. He was a great influence.' Bergman liked to use a baseball analogy to explain the couple's writing process - pitching and catching ideas back and forth. He preferred to have the music before he began to write the lyrics. Composers would leave their compositions with the couple. They would then write words that fit the notes. 'We believe that words are at the tips of those notes and it's our job to find them,' he told radio station NPR in 2011. 'That's the adventure.' 'The kids' Yellow Bird was the duo's first money-making song, but their big break came with Frank Sinatra's 1960 album Nice 'n' Easy. The crooner became a friend of the couple. He referred to them as 'the kids.' They had another career breakthrough when they worked with composer and producer Quincy Jones in 1967 on the song In the Heat of the Night for the film of the same name. They won their first Academy Award for best original song for writing The Windmills of Your Mind the following year, with Michel Legrand, for the film The Thomas Crown Affair. They were awarded another Oscar in 1974 for The Way We Were with Marvin Hamlisch, as well as a Grammy for Song of the Year in 1975. In 1983, the couple were the first songwriters to have written three of the five Oscar-nominated songs. Two years later they took home their third Academy Award for Yentl, starring Barbra Streisand. The singer became a friend and frequent interpreter of their music. Streisand recorded more than 50 of their songs. She released the album What Matters Most as a tribute to the Bergmans and their music. 'When she does our songs, she finds things that always surprise us,' Bergman told Reuters in 2011. 'She deepens them. She gets all the nuances, everything, so it's thrilling.' The couple's Emmys included awards for the TV movies Queen of the Stardust Ballroom (1975) and Sybil (1977), and the song Ordinary Miracles from the 1995 Streisand special Barbra: The Concert. The couple married in 1958 and had one daughter. Bergman said he loved songwriting. Doing it for so long with someone he loved made it that much more beautiful. REUTERS
Express Tribune
18-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Express Tribune
Alan Bergman dies at 99 after legendary songwriting career with Marilyn Bergman
Alan Bergman, the Oscar-winning lyricist known for his decades-long partnership with his wife Marilyn Bergman, died Thursday night at the age of 99. According to The Hollywood Reporter, he passed away from natural causes at his Los Angeles home, as confirmed by his daughter, producer Julie Bergman Sender. Together, Alan and Marilyn Bergman formed one of the most successful songwriting teams in film history. Their lyrical collaborations spanned more than 50 years and included timeless classics such as 'The Way We Were,' 'The Windmills of Your Mind,' and 'You Don't Bring Me Flowers.' Marilyn Bergman died in January 2022 at the age of 93. The Bergmans were frequent collaborators with Barbra Streisand, composer Michel Legrand, and Marvin Hamlisch. They earned three Academy Awards: for 'The Way We Were' (1973), 'The Windmills of Your Mind' (1968), and the score for Yentl (1983). They were also nominated 16 times across their careers, earning recognition for songs featured in The Thomas Crown Affair, Same Time, Next Year, The Happy Ending, and Sometimes a Great Notion, among others. Their influence extended to television as well, writing theme songs for shows such as Maude, Good Times, Alice, and Brooklyn Bridge. The duo also received three Emmy Awards and were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1980. Alan was born in Brooklyn on September 11, 1925, and served in World War II before pursuing music and theater at the University of North Carolina and later UCLA. Early in his career, he worked as a TV director at CBS in Philadelphia, where he met legendary songwriter Johnny Mercer, who encouraged him to write lyrics. Alan and Marilyn met in 1956, marrying two years later. Their first collaborations included work with Fred Astaire, Dean Martin, and Frank Sinatra. In addition to his daughter Julie, Alan Bergman is survived by his granddaughter, Emily.
