Lyricist Ira Gershwin was known far and wide as one of the kindest and best-adjusted men in the music industry. It is now part of American folklore that the Gershwin boys' mother bought a piano so that Ira could take lessons, only to discover that it was George who had "the gift." Ira suppressed his own artistic aspirations while helping out in his father's many business ventures; but while attending CCNY, the older Gershwin brother began composing witty comic poems for the school newspaper. He began writing song lyrics in 1918, using the alias Arthur Francis. The first Broadway show on which Ira Gershwin used his real name was significantly titled Be Yourself. With the 1924 musical comedy Lady Be Good, Ira began writing lyrics for George's melodies; this felicitous fraternal teaming resulted in one hit after another, as well as the Pulitzer Prize-winning play Of Thee I Sing (1931). The Gershwin Brothers' first Hollywood score was for the 1931 Janet Gaynor vehicle Delicious. After George's death in 1937, Ira successfully collaborated with several other composers, notably Jerome Kern (for the 1944 Rita Hayworth/ Gene Kelly film musical Cover Girl) and Kurt Weill (for the 1954 version of A Star is Born). In the 1945 biopic Rhapsody in Blue, Ira Gershwin was portrayed by Herbert Rudley.
| Title | Year | Editors' Rating | User Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Crazy For You
From Musical by |
1999 | |||
|
Harold Arlen: Somewhere Over the Rainbow
Archival Appearance |
1999 | |||
|
Porgy and Bess
From Musical by |
1993 | |||
|
Betsy's Wedding
Featured Music |
1990 | |||
|
Torch Song Trilogy
Featured Music |
1988 | |||
|
Someone to Love
Featured Music |
1987 | |||
|
Someone to Watch over Me
Featured Music |
1987 | |||
|
'Round Midnight
Featured Music |
1986 | |||
|
Beyond Therapy
Featured Music |
1986 | |||
|
City Heat
Featured Music |
1984 | |||
|
Chinatown
Featured Music |
1974 | |||
|
Star!
Featured Music |
1968 | |||
|
Sylvia
Songwriter |
1965 | |||
|
Kiss Me, Stupid!
Featured Music |
1964 | |||
|
Judy Garland: Judy Garland & Friends
Featured Music |
1963 | |||
|
The Notorious Landlady
Songwriter |
1962 | |||
|
Porgy and Bess
From Musical by |
1959 | |||
|
Funny Face
Featured Music |
1957 | |||
|
A Star Is Born
Composer (Music Score) |
1954 | |||
|
The Country Girl
Songwriter |
1954 | |||
|
Give a Girl a Break
Composer (Music Score) |
1953 | |||
|
An American in Paris
Lyricist, Songwriter |
1951 | |||
|
The Barkleys of Broadway
Songwriter |
1949 | |||
|
The Shocking Miss Pilgrim
Songwriter |
1947 | |||
|
Ziegfeld Follies
Composer (Music Score) |
1946 | |||
|
Rhapsody in Blue
Actor, Songwriter |
1945 | |||
|
Where Do We Go from Here?
Songwriter |
1945 | |||
|
Cover Girl
Composer (Music Score) |
1944 | |||
|
The Lady in the Dark
From Musical by |
1944 | |||
|
Girl Crazy
Composer (Music Score), From Musical by |
1943 | |||
|
Princess O'Rourke
Songwriter |
1943 | |||
|
The North Star
Songwriter |
1943 | |||
|
Lady Be Good
Composer (Music Score) |
1941 | |||
|
The Goldwyn Follies
Songwriter |
1938 | |||
|
A Damsel in Distress
Songwriter |
1937 | |||
|
Shall We Dance?
Songwriter |
1937 | |||
|
Girl Crazy
Composer (Music Score) |
1932 | |||
|
Delicious
Songwriter |
1931 |




