Adolph Green was born in the Bronx, New York on December 2, 1915 into a family of Hungarian immigrants. He graduated high school in 1934 and worked at assorted jobs including as a runner on Wall Street. In 1937, at a summer camp, he met the young Leonard Bernstein who was the music counselor, and they became life-long friends. In 1938, another decisive meeting occurred while making the rounds of theatrical agents he met Betty Comden.
Together with Judy Holliday, the two formed the act "The Revuers," which performed in the legendary Greenwich Village nightclub, The Village Vanguard. They went on to collaborate with Leonard Bernstein and Jerome Robbins on what was the first show for all of them, On The Town. Also with Mr. Bernstein they did the score for Wonderful Town. With Jule Styne they wrote the book and/or lyrics for Bells Are Ringing, Hallelujah, Baby, Do Re Mi, Subways Are For Sleeping, Peter Pan, and others, wrote the book for Applause, and book and lyrics for On The Twentieth Century and A Doll’s Life. Four of these, Applause, Hallelujah, Baby, Wonderful Town, and On The Twentieth Century, won them five Tony Awards, and A Doll’s Life, a Tony nomination.
Their many film musicals include Singin’ In The Rain, The Band Wagon, On The Town, Bells Are Ringing, It’s Always Fair Weather, Good News, and The Barkleys Of Broadway. Two of these, The Band Wagon and It’s Always Fair Weather received Academy Award Nominations, plus On The Town won the Screen Writer’s Award.
“Singin’ In The Rain” was recently voted one of the ten best American films ever made and, by a vote of international film critics conducted by the prestigious magazine Sight and Sound, it was chosen as number three of the ten best films of all time.
As performers, they appeared in On The Town, and later did an evening at the Golden Theatre, A Party With Betty Comden and Adolph Green, comprised of material from their own shows and movies, and from their act, “The Revuers.” In 1977 they did a new version of A Party to unanimous acclaim at the Morosco Theatre, and toured with it. A Party received an Obie Award when it was first performed.
They were both members of the Council of the Dramatists’ Guild, have been elected to the Theatre Hall of Fame, and the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1980, and have received the Mayor of New York’s Certificate of Excellence.
Mr. Green appeared in the films “Simon,” “My Favorite Year,” “Garbo Talks,” and “Lilly In Love.”
Some of their best known songs include “Just In Time,” “The Party’s Over,” “Make Someone Happy,” “New York, New York,” “Neverland,” “It’s Love,” “Lonely Town” and “Some Other Time.”
Stars they have written for in their musicals and films include Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire, Lauren Bacall, Rosalind Russell, Judy Holliday, Mary Martin, Phil Silvers, Carol Burnett and Nancy Walker.
The Will Rogers Follies, which opened May 1, 1991, with music by Cy Coleman, book by Peter Stone and directed by Tommy Tune, was another of Comden and Green’s collaborations as lyricists.
All bios appear as they were submitted in the year of induction or award presentation.