Jack Norworth, September 1, 1959
From: Jonathan Thomas Stratman
Series: Who Died Today
Length: 03:00
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- Jack Norworth, September 1, 1959
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- Jonathan Thomas Stratman
You may not know his name, but chances are good you could sing, hum or whistle one of his tunes.
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Transcript
Jack Norworth died today, September first, 1959.
You may not know his name, but chances are very good you could sing, hum or whistle one of his tunes.
Born in Philadelphia, 1879, Norworth began as a singer and a vaudeville performer who later appeared on radio and in the early talkies. A Tin Pan Alley songwriter, a hit maker … he was very much the Neil Diamond or Paul McCartney of his day.
Along with first wife Nora Bayes, his Vaudeville singing partner, Norworth wrote and recorded the classic Shine on Harvest Moon, released in 1908 but still being recorded, performed and enjoyed to this day.
It was also in 1908, riding a New York subway, that Norworth saw a billboard reading … Ball Game today at the Polo Grounds. Even though he had never actually been taken out to a ballgame, baseball words and phrases began racking up line drives in his mind … and he began to dash off lyrics, s...
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