Biography
Born Kay Faulkner Swift in New York City, New York, USA, on 19 April 1897, the composer, lyricist and writer died in Southington, Connecticut, USA, on 28 January 1993. Her modest yet striking body of Broadway material has frequently been eclipsed by her intimate ties to George Gershwin. Following training at Juilliard, she developed into a skilled pianist who appeared regularly in recital settings until her Broadway debut arrived in 1929 via “Can’t We Be Friends?,” introduced by Libby Holman inside the successful revue The Little Show. Paul James, the pen name of her first husband, banker James P. Warburg, supplied the knowing, understated words to what is otherwise a lively, buoyant melody. The pair achieved further recognition the next year when they supplied the score for Fine And Dandy, among whose numbers were “Let’s Go Eat Worms In The Garden,” “Jog Hop,” the engaging title song and Swift’s most enduring composition, “Can This Be Love.” Her deep involvement with George Gershwin, which ultimately dissolved her marriage, proved both passionate and creatively rewarding. As a wealthy socialite she eased his move from Tin Pan Alley into the concert world, and the two often labored side by side at the keyboard. In June 1937, after nine months in Hollywood with brother Ira, George informed Swift that he would return so the couple could reunite, yet he died shortly afterward, before the journey could be made. Swift later joined Ira Gershwin in completing several of George’s unfinished or fragmentary manuscripts, many of which formed the score for the 1947 film musical The Shocking Miss Pilgrim, starring Betty Grable and Dick Haymes; the best-known results were “For You, For Me, For Evermore” and “Aren’t You Kind Of Glad We Did?” Her own contributions encompassed “Up Among The Chimney Pots” for the 9:15 Revue (1930), “I’m All Washed Up With Love” (with Albert Silverman) for the left-wing musical Parade (1935), the music and lyrics for Cornelia Otis Skinner’s solo revue Paris 90, the score for choreographer George Balanchine’s ballet Alma Mater—a satire on the Harvard-Yale football game (1935)—and the song cycle Reaching For The Brass Ring. Additional revue and stage songs included “A Moonlight Memory,” “One Little Girl” (“Campfire Girls” 50th Anniversary Song), the 1962 Seattle World’s Fair number “Century 21,” “Calliope,” “Sagebrush Lullaby” and “Forever And A Day.” Her second husband, rodeo cowboy Faye Hubbard, figured in the 1943 memoir Who Could Ask For Anything More?, which reached the screen in 1950 with Irene Dunne and Fred MacMurray. Her third marriage, ending in divorce, was to radio announcer Hunter Galloway.