Biography
Composer and arranger Arthur Johnston first gained recognition through his contributions to the Hollywood musicals that defined the 1930s. Born in New York City on January 10, 1898, he started performing on piano in neighborhood cinemas at age 15. Two years afterward he secured a position as a vocal arranger for a publishing company in Manhattan. He subsequently worked as Irving Berlin’s personal pianist and aide while also acting as musical director for most of Berlin’s initial Broadway productions. Johnston supplied the score for the 1924 stage musical Dixie to Broadway, which introduced the numbers “Mandy, Make Up Your Mind” and “I’m a Little Blackbird Looking for a Bluebird.” Five years later he moved to Hollywood, where in 1931 he prepared the music for Charlie Chaplin’s landmark film City Lights. His first of several Bing Crosby features arrived in 1933 with College Humor, which yielded the songs “Learn to Croon,” “Down the Old Ox Road,” and “Moonstruck.” The 1934 production Murder at the Vanities contained what became his best-known composition, “Cocktails for Two,” written with Sam Coslow. Belle of the Nineties featured “My Old Flame,” performed on screen by the legendary Mae West. Additional notable titles include “Sitting High on a Hilltop,” “Sing, Brother, Sing,” “Pennies From Heaven,” “It’s the Natural Thing to Do,” “All You Want to Do Is Dance,” and “Song of the South.” Inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, Johnston died in Corona del Mar, CA, on May 1, 1954.
Singles
