Vic Mizzy

Victor Mizzy (January 9, 1916 – October 17, 2009) was an American composer for television and movies and musician whose best-known works are the themes to the 1960s television sitcoms Green Acres and The Addams Family. Mizzy also wrote top-20 songs from the 1930s to 1940s.^[1]

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Vic Mizzy
Publicity photo of Vic Mizzy
Background information
Birth name	Victor Mizzy
Born	(1916-01-09)January 9, 1916 Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Died	October 17, 2009(2009-10-17) (aged 93) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupation(s)	Film and television theme composer, musician
Years active	late 1930s–2009

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Mizzy was born in Brooklyn, New York, to two Jewish immigrants, and attended New York University.^[2] As a child, he played accordion and piano, and was largely self-taught as a composer.^[2] During World War II, he served in the United States Navy where he wrote some of his hit songs.^[2]

In the late 1930s, while based in New York City,^[2] Mizzy began composing a string of popular songs.^[3] These included Doris Day's 1945 hit "My Dreams Are Getting Better All the Time".^[2] Other Mizzy compositions were "There's a Faraway Look in Your Eye" and "Three Little Sisters", both co-written with lyricist Irving Taylor. The latter were sung by The Andrews Sisters on Decca Records and in the 1942 Universal film Private Buckaroo, in which the sisters appeared with Harry James' big band.

Dinah Shore also recorded "Three Little Sisters"; "Take It Easy" (also with lyricist Taylor), "Pretty Kitty Blue Eyes", "The Whole World Is Singing My Song", "Choo'n Gum" (recorded by The Andrews Sisters, as well as Teresa Brewer), "The Jones Boy", which was a 1953 hit for The Mills Brothers, and "With a Hey and a Hi and a Ho-Ho-Ho".^[2]

Mizzy had two children with his first wife, Mary Small, who as a 1930s child singer had been known as "The Little Girl With The Big Voice," and who remained popular (especially on radio) through the 1950s.^{[citation needed]} One of her daughters, Patty Keeler, a singer and songwriter, often worked with songwriter Doc Pomus.^{[citation needed]}

Mizzy died at his home in Bel Air, California, on October 17, 2009, aged 93.^[9] He was interred at Eden Memorial Park in Mission Hills, California.

• "I'll Never Fail You" (1938) with Irving Taylor
• "Igloo" (1939) with Irving Taylor
• "Three Little Sisters" (1942) with Irving Taylor
• "Take It Easy" (1943) with Albert De Bru and Irving Taylor
• "I Had a Little Talk with the Lord" (1943) with Manny Curtis (World War II song)
• "Pretty Kitty Blue Eyes" (1944) with Manny Curtis
• "My Dreams Are Getting Better All the Time" (1945) with Manny Curtis
• "Oh How She Lied to Me" (1945) with Manny Curtis
• "With a Hey and a Hi and a Ho-Ho-Ho" (1947) with Manny Curtis
• "In the Middle, In the Middle, In the Middle", an early 1960s anti-jaywalking public service announcement for New York City, sung by Mizzy's daughter Patty Keeler. The song was later covered by They Might Be Giants (No!, 2002)^[10]