ASCAP member Doris Fisher, composer of many hit
songs of the 1940s, died on January 15, 2003 at
Century City Hospital in Los Angeles after a brief
illness. Born in New York City in 1915, she was
a member of a famed musical family. Her father,
Fred Fisher, was the composer of "Peg O' My
Heart," "Dardanella," and "Chicago."
Her two brothers also wrote songs: Dan was especially
known for "Good Morning Heartache" and
Marvin for "When Sunny
Gets Blue."
Doris
Fisher’s first song hits were “Tutti
Frutti,” (written with Slim Gaillard) in 1938,
and “Whispering Grass,” (written with
her father in 1940), introduced with great success
by the Ink Spots. At about the same time, Fisher
became a successful singer in nightclubs and on
the radio, singing with Eddy Duchin’s band
and, not wanting to trade on her father’s
name, making records with her own group under the
name Penny Wise and her Wise Guys.
Lyricist
Allan Roberts became her most important collaborator.
In 1944 alone, they wrote “Angelina (The Waitress
At The Pizzeria),” which became identified
with Louis Prima; “Good, Good, Good,”
sung by Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters; “Into
Each Life Some Rain Must Fall,” a major hit
for Ella Fitzgerald and the Ink Spots, “Invitation
To The Blues,” introduced by Ella Mae Morse
with Harry James; “That Ole Devil Called Love,”
for Billie Holiday; and “You Always Hurt The
One You Love,” a hit first for the Mills Brothers
and then, for Spike Jones in a novelty rendition.
Other
Fisher-Roberts hits included “Tampico,”
for Stan Kenton and June Christy; and two of Pearl
Bailey’s biggest hits, “Tired”
and “That’s Good Enough For Me.”
These successes attracted the attention of Columbia
Pictures’ Harry Cohn, who recruited Fisher
and Roberts to write for Hollywood films. Their
first project was Gilda, starring Rita
Hayworth, which featured “Put the Blame on
Mame.”
Additional
films to which Fisher and Roberts contributed are
Down To Earth, The Lady From Shanghai, Singin’
In The Corn, Strawberry Roan, Dead Reckoning, The
Thrill Of Brazil, and The Corpse Came C.O.D.
In
1949, Fisher not only left the music business to
marry Charles Gershenson, but also gave up Hollywood
for Detroit. In addition to bringing up a daughter
and son, her many interests included Americana and
interior design, a field in which she enjoyed a
successful second career.
Doris
Fisher’s songs were recorded by numerous artists,
including Ella Fitzgerald, Glenn Miller, Nat King
Cole, Doris Day, Gene Autry, Billie Holiday, Louis
Prima, Margaret Whiting, The Ink Spots, Pearl Bailey,
Count Basie, Jo Stafford, Bing Crosby, Xavier Cugat,
The Mills Brothers, Kay Starr, Gene Krupa, Jeri
Southern, Woody Herman, June Christy, Vaughn Monroe,
Stan Kenton, Dick Haymes, Louis Jordan, Anita Ellis,
Johnny Desmond, Billy Eckstine, Julie London, Spike
Jones, and The Andrews Sisters.
She
is survived by her daughter, Frederica Thea, of
New York City, her son, Ned Gershenson, of Henderson,
Nevada, and two grandsons.
