Voting Station

Johnny Mercer

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Songwriter

The Resume

    (November 18, 1909-June 25, 1976)
    Born in Savannah, Georgia
    Lyricist and singer
    As a singer, had Top 10 hits with 'Strip Polka' (1942), 'Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive' (1945), 'Candy' (with Jo Stafford,1945), 'Personality' (1946), 'Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah' (1947), 'Winter Wonderland' (1947), 'A Gal in Calico' (1947), 'Huggin' and Chalkin'' (1947), 'Sugar Blues' (1947) and 'Baby It's Cold Outside' (with Margaret Whiting,1949)
    Wrote (with various collaborators) the songs 'Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive,' 'Autumn Leaves,' 'Blues in the Night,' 'Days of Wine and Roses,' 'Fools Rush In,' 'Hooray for Hollywood,' 'I'm an Old Cowhand from the Rio Grande,' 'Jeepers! Creepers!' 'Laura,' 'Moon River,' 'On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe,' 'One for My Baby (And One More for the Road),' 'Satin Doll,' 'Skylark,' 'That Old Black Magic,' 'Too Marvelous for Words' and 'You Must Have Been a Beautiful Baby'
    Co-founder of Capitol Records with songwriter/film producer Buddy DeSylva and record store owner Glen Wallichs (1942)
    Inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame (1971)

Why he might be annoying:

    He started off as an actor but never got beyond bit parts.
    He never learned to read or write music.
    He had an affair with Judy Garland while he was married and she was engaged to David Rose.
    He had a reputation in Hollywood as a mean drunk.
    One of his nicknames was 'the Pixie from Dixie.'

Why he might not be annoying:

    He was unable to go to college after his father was financially wiped out in the collapse of the Florida real estate market and left with over a million dollars in debts.
    As the talent scout for Capitol Records, he signed Nat 'King' Cole, Peggy Lee and Frank Sinatra to the label.
    He invested $25,000 in Capitol which was sold 13 years later to EMI for $20 million.
    He used $300,000 from his share of the sale to fulfill a promise to his late father by paying off the last of his creditors.
    After he sobered up, he would send flowers and an apology to anyone he had insulted while drunk.
    He and his wife adopted a son and a daughter.
    He won four Oscars for Best Song and two Grammys for Song of the Year.

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 4 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 5 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 9 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 20 Votes: 15.00% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 7 Votes: 42.86% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 2 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 40 Votes: 90.0% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 5 Votes: 40.0% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 28 Votes: 32.14% Annoying