Loesser, Frank

Loesser, (Henry) Frank

(1910–69) lyricist, composer; born in New York City. As a songwriter in Hollywood in the 1930s and 1940s he wrote such hits as "Heart and Soul" (1938, with Hoagy Carmichael), "Baby, It's Cold Outside" (1947), and "On a Slow Boat to China" (1948). After a modest success with Where's Charley? (1948), he scored his greatest triumph, with both critics and the public, with the Broadway classic, Guys and Dolls (1950), for which he wrote both words and music; it earned him a Tony Award. He then wrote the semi-operatic The Most Happy Fella (1956) and in 1962 he won the Pulitzer in drama for the musical How to Succeed in Business Without Even Trying (1961). He also ran a music publishing firm that helped support young composers.

The Cambridge Dictionary of American Biography, by John S. Bowman. Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1995. Reproduced with permission.