An American composer and producer, born in Hillsboro, Texas, USA, to parents of Scottish-Irish descent. He worked as a Broadway conductor, and went to Hollywood in 1932 with Ethel Merman, to write and arrange her films at Paramount. He contributed music to works such as Funny Face (1957), Ziegfeld Follies (1945), Meet Me in St. Louis (1944), and Annie Get Your Gun (1950). He died on July 13, 1970 in Los Angeles, California, USA.