Con Conrad

Con Conrad (June 18, 1891 – September 28, 1938) Songwriter and producer born Conrad K. Dober in New York City.

Published his first song, Down in Dear Old New Orleans, in 1912. Produced the Broadway show: The Honeymoon Express, starring Al Jolson, in 1913. By 1918, Conrad was writing and publishing, along with Henry Waterson and had his first major hit in 1920 with Margie. Over the next several years, he would also be responsible for such standards as: Ma, He’s Making Eyes At Me, You’ve Got to See Your Mama Every Night, Memory Lane, Lonesome and Sorry and Come on Spark Plug.

In 1923 Conrad focused on the stage and wrote the scores for the Broadway shows: The Greenwich Follies, Moonlight, Betty Lee, Kitty’s Kisses and Americana. In 1929 he moved to Hollywood after losing all of his money on unsuccesful shows. There he worked on films such as: Fox Movietone Follies, Palmy Days, The Gay Divorcee and Here’s to Romance.

Conrad received the first Academy Award for Best Song for The Continental in 1934 along with collaborator Herb Magidson. Conrad died four years later in Van Nuys, California.