Biography
Born October 15, 1882, in Portland, Oregon, Tin Pan Alley lyricist Ballard MacDonald later headed east to New York in search of songwriting opportunities. Employed by the J. Fred Helf publishing company, he supplied the words for “Play That Barber-Shop Chord” in 1910; after the lyrics were revised, vaudeville star Bert Williams introduced the number in The Ziegfeld Follies, turning it into a success. Denied proper credit, MacDonald sued Helf and was awarded 37,500 dollars, an award that forced the firm into bankruptcy.
He next joined composer Harry Carroll for the 1912 songs “On the Mississippi,” “The Trail of the Lonesome Pine”—drawn from the million-selling novel—and “It Takes a Little Rain With the Sunshine to Make the World Go Round.” A subsequent collaboration with James Hanley yielded the 1917 hit “(Back Home Again In) Indiana,” a melody that echoed Paul Dresser’s “On the Banks of the Wabash.” In 1918 MacDonald shared lyric duties with Joe Goodwin on Hanley’s “Three Wonderful Letters from Home” and supplied the text for Mary Earl’s “Beautiful Ohio,” which later became the official state song of Ohio.
Shifting focus in the early 1920s to Broadway revues, MacDonald found his most celebrated partner in 1924 when he and Buddy DeSylva wrote the lyrics for George Gershwin’s “Somebody Loves Me,” featured in George White’s Scandals. Two years afterward he joined Walter Donaldson to furnish material for the stage production Sweetheart Time and also contributed to both the theatrical and screen versions of the British musical Battling Butler, whose film adaptation starred Buster Keaton. From that point forward he frequently supplied the books for the musicals in which his songs appeared. His work also surfaced in motion pictures, notably the 1930 release It’s a Great Life, for which he and Dave Dreyer wrote “The Hoosier Hop” and “I’m Following You.” Thumbs Up, which reached Broadway in 1934, marked his final stage production; he died on November 17, 1935.
He next joined composer Harry Carroll for the 1912 songs “On the Mississippi,” “The Trail of the Lonesome Pine”—drawn from the million-selling novel—and “It Takes a Little Rain With the Sunshine to Make the World Go Round.” A subsequent collaboration with James Hanley yielded the 1917 hit “(Back Home Again In) Indiana,” a melody that echoed Paul Dresser’s “On the Banks of the Wabash.” In 1918 MacDonald shared lyric duties with Joe Goodwin on Hanley’s “Three Wonderful Letters from Home” and supplied the text for Mary Earl’s “Beautiful Ohio,” which later became the official state song of Ohio.
Shifting focus in the early 1920s to Broadway revues, MacDonald found his most celebrated partner in 1924 when he and Buddy DeSylva wrote the lyrics for George Gershwin’s “Somebody Loves Me,” featured in George White’s Scandals. Two years afterward he joined Walter Donaldson to furnish material for the stage production Sweetheart Time and also contributed to both the theatrical and screen versions of the British musical Battling Butler, whose film adaptation starred Buster Keaton. From that point forward he frequently supplied the books for the musicals in which his songs appeared. His work also surfaced in motion pictures, notably the 1930 release It’s a Great Life, for which he and Dave Dreyer wrote “The Hoosier Hop” and “I’m Following You.” Thumbs Up, which reached Broadway in 1934, marked his final stage production; he died on November 17, 1935.