Theodora Morse (July 11, 1883 — November 10, 1953) was an American songwriter and composer. She was a

Tin Pan Alley Tin Pan Alley was a collection of History of music publishing, music publishers and songwriters in New York City that dominated the American popular music, popular music of the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Originally ...

lyricist who collaborated to produce a number of popular songs.

Background

Alfreda Theodora Strandberg was born in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

. On March 7, 1907, she married

Theodore F. Morse Theodore F. Morse (April 13, 1873 – May 25, 1924) was an American composer of popular songs. Biography Born in Washington, D.C., Morse was educated at the Maryland Military and Naval Academy. He went on to study both violin and piano. He an ...

(1873–1924). She and her husband became a successful songwriting team for

. Listed as Terriss & Morse, they were one of the earliest Tin Pan Alley husband-wife songwriting teams.

Career

Theodora not only wrote with her husband, but also collaborated with other composers. Professionally, she often used the pseudonyms of Dorothy Terriss, Dolly Morse and D. A. Esrom. She wrote the lyrics for '' Hail, Hail, the Gang's All Here'' to a tune originally written by

Arthur Sullivan Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan (13 May 1842 – 22 November 1900) was an English composer. He is best known for 14 comic opera, operatic Gilbert and Sullivan, collaborations with the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, including ''H.M.S. Pinaf ...

for the comic opera ''

The Pirates of Penzance ''The Pirates of Penzance; or, The Slave of Duty'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert, W. S. Gilbert. Its official premiere was at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York City on 3 ...

''. The popular good-night waltz ''

Three O'Clock in the Morning "Three O'Clock in the Morning" is a waltz composed by Julián Robledo that was extremely popular in the 1920s. Robledo published the music as a piano solo in 1919, and two years later Dorothy Terriss wrote the lyrics. Paul Whiteman's instrument ...

'' was written to music composed by Julián Robledo. The song was recorded in 1922 by

Paul Whiteman Paul Samuel Whiteman (March 28, 1890 – December 29, 1967) was an American Jazz bandleader, composer, orchestral director, and violinist. As the leader of one of the most popular dance bands in the United States during the 1920s and early 193 ...

and his orchestra, and also appeared in the 1946 film ''Margie''. Jazz and pop standard, ''

Wonderful One "Wonderful One" is a popular song recorded by the Paul Whiteman Orchestra on January 25, 1923 in New York and was released as Victor 19019-B. The record reached no. 3 on the ''Billboard'' chart. The song was also recorded as "My Wonderful One". ...

'', was written by Paul Whiteman and

Ferde Grofé Ferdinand Rudolph von Grofé (March 27, 1892 April 3, 1972), known as Ferde Grofé () was an American composer, arranger, pianist, and instrumentalist. He is best known for his 1931 five-movement symphonic poem, ''Grand Canyon Suite'', and for ...

, with lyrics by Theodora Morse based on a theme by movie director

Marshall Neilan Marshall Ambrose "Mickey" Neilan (April 11, 1891 – October 27, 1958; also credited Marshall Neilon) was an American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter, whose work in films began in the early Silent film, silent era. Early life Born ...

. Theodora Morse died in

White Plains, New York White Plains is a city in and the county seat of Westchester County, New York, United States. It is an inner suburb of New York City, and a commercial hub of Westchester County, a densely populated suburban county that is home to about one milli ...

, aged 70.

Selected works

*'' Hail, Hail, the Gang's All Here'' (1917) *''

Soldier Boy Soldier Boy is the name of three superhero characters in the comic book series ''Herogasm'' and '' The Boys'', created by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. The first character introduced (but the third Soldier Boy in the timeline, with his two ...

'' (1915) *''

'' (1921)"Gifted Girls Who Write Songs"
(January 18, 1929) ''The News-Palladium'' p. 24, via Newspapers.com. *''

'' (1922)

References

External links

The Composers of Tin Pan Alley
{{DEFAULTSORT:Morse, Theodora 1953 deaths Musicians from Brooklyn American lyricists Songwriters from New York (state) American people of Swedish descent 20th-century American composers 20th-century American women composers 1883 births 20th-century American songwriters