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Cy Coleman (born Seymour Kaufman; June 14, 1929 – November 18, 2004) was an American composer, songwriter, and jazz pianist. ==Life and career== Coleman was born Seymour Kaufman on June 14, 1929, in New York City to Eastern European Jewish parents, and was raised in the Bronx. His mother, Ida (née Prizent) was an apartment landlady and his father was a brickmason.〔Berkvist, Robert.("Cy Coleman, Composer Whose Jazz-Fired Musicals Blazed on Broadway, Dies at 75", )''The New York Times'', November 20, 2004〕 He was a child prodigy who gave piano recitals at Steinway Hall, Town Hall, and Carnegie Hall between the ages of six and nine.〔Jones, Kenneth.("Cy Coleman, a Master of the Show Tune, Is Dead at 75" ), playbill.com, November 19, 2004〕 Before beginning his fabled Broadway career, he led the Cy Coleman Trio, which made many recordings and was a much-in-demand club attraction. Despite the early classical and jazz success, Coleman decided to build a career in popular music. His first collaborator was Joseph Allen McCarthy, but his most successful early partnership, albeit a turbulent one, was with Carolyn Leigh. The pair wrote many pop hits, including "Witchcraft" and "The Best Is Yet to Come." One of his instrumentals, "Playboy's Theme," became the signature music of the regular TV shows and specials presented by ''Playboy'', and remains synonymous with the magazine and its creator, Hugh Hefner. Coleman's career as a Broadway composer began when he and Leigh collaborated on ''Wildcat'' (1960), which marked the Broadway debut of comedienne Lucille Ball. The score included the hit tune "Hey, Look Me Over." When Ball became ill, she left the show, and it closed. Next for the two was ''Little Me'', with a book by Neil Simon based on the novel of the same name by Patrick Dennis. The show introduced "Real Live Girl" and "I've Got Your Number," which became popular standards. In 1964, Coleman met Dorothy Fields at a party, and when he asked if she would like to collaborate with him, she is reported to have answered, "Thank God somebody asked."〔Furia, Philip and Lasser, Michael, ''America's Songs:The Stories Behind the Songs of Broadway, Hollywood, and Tin Pan Alley'' (2006), CRC Press, ISBN 0-415-97246-9, p. 287〕 Fields was revitalized by working with the much younger Coleman, and by the contemporary nature of their first project, which was ''Sweet Charity'', again with a book by Simon, starring Gwen Verdon, and introducing the songs "If My Friends Could See Me Now", "I'm a Brass Band" and "Big Spender". The show was a major success and Coleman found working with Fields much easier than with Leigh. The partnership was to work on two more shows – an aborted project about Eleanor Roosevelt, and ''Seesaw'' which reached Broadway in 1973 after a troubled out-of-town tour. Despite mixed reviews, the show enjoyed a healthy run. The partnership was cut short by Fields' death in 1974. Coleman remained prolific in the late 1970s. He collaborated on ''I Love My Wife'' (1977) with Michael Stewart, ''On The Twentieth Century'' (1978) with Betty Comden and Adolph Green, and ''Home Again, Home Again'' with Barbara Fried, although the latter never reached Broadway. Also in 1970 he produced the single "Lying Here" (Mercury 73150). for the Rock Opera "Sensations", and took a full page (back cover) ad in Billboard magazine to promote his upcoming star vocalist Steve Leeds singing In 1980, Coleman served as producer and composer for the circus-themed ''Barnum'', which co-starred Jim Dale and Glenn Close. Later in the decade, he collaborated on ''Welcome to the Club'' (1988) with A. E. Hotchner, and ''City of Angels'' (1989) with David Zippel. In the latter, inspired by the hard-boiled detective film noir of the 1930s and '40s, he returned to his jazz roots, and the show was a huge critical and commercial success. The 1990s brought more new Coleman musicals to Broadway: ''The Will Rogers Follies'' (1991), again with Comden and Green, ''The Life'' (1997), a gritty look at pimps, prostitutes, and assorted other lowlife in the big city, with Ira Gasman, and a revised production of ''Little Me''. Coleman's film scores include ''Father Goose'', ''The Art of Love'', ''Garbo Talks'', ''Power'', and ''Family Business''.〔(PBS biography ) pbs.org, accessed March 30, 2009〕 In addition, he wrote memorable television specials for Shirley MacLaine, ''If My Friends Could See Me Now'' and ''Gypsy in My Soul''.〔(Biography ) feinsteinsattheregency.com, accessed March 30, 2009〕 Coleman has been the only composer to win consecutive Tony awards for Best Score at the same time that the corresponding musicals won for Best Musical: ''City of Angels'' and ''Will Rogers' Follies''. Coleman was on the ASCAP Board of Directors for many years and also served as their Vice Chairman Writer.〔(ASCAP listing ) ascap.com, accessed March 30, 2009〕 One final musical with a Coleman score played in Los Angeles at the Mark Taper Forum Dec. 2003-Jan. 2004 under the title ''Like Jazz'', as a Broadway tryout.〔(White and Groener Like Jazz in Cy Coleman Musical at Mark Taper Forum )〕 Investor Transamerica Capital went forward with plans to mount a Broadway production renamed ''In the Pocket''.〔(The People In The Pyramid Give Their Regards To Broadway )〕 Dirk Decloedt and Maurice Hines were announced as director and choreographer with an anticipated opening in Spring 2006 but it never opened.〔( Dirk Decloedt and Maurice Hines Ready In the Pocket for B'way )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Cy Coleman」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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