__NOTOC__ Edith Lindeman (March 21, 1898 – December 22, 1984), also known as Edith Elliott Lindeman Calisch, was the film and theater critic for the ''

Richmond Times-Dispatch The ''Richmond Times-Dispatch'' (''RTD'' or ''TD'' for short) is the primary daily newspaper in Richmond, Virginia, Richmond, the capital of Virginia, and the primary newspaper of record for the state of Virginia. Circulation The ''Times-Dispatc ...

'' from 1933 to 1964. She is best remembered for writing lyrics to popular songs, in collaboration with composer and Richmond radio announcer Carl Stutz.

Early writings

Before joining the newspaper, Edith Lindeman wrote two children's books used in Jewish Sabbath schools, ''Bible Tales for the Very Young'' (1930) and ''Bible Tales for Young People'' (1934). Based on

Old Testament The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...

stories, Lindeman wrote these at the request of her father-in-law, Rabbi Edward Nathan Calisch. She also wrote a

one-act play A one-act play is a play that has only one act, as distinct from plays that occur over several acts. One-act plays may consist of one or more scenes. The 20-40 minute play has emerged as a popular subgenre of the one-act play, especially in writ ...

(''The Jews Who Stood by Washington'') and also collected Jewish legends in ''Fairy Tales from Grandfather's Big Book'' (1938) and ''Three Score and Twenty: A Brief Biography of Edward Nathan Calisch'' (1945).

Newspaper career

She joined the ''

'' in 1933, serving mostly as a film and theater critic, but also as a writer and editor on entertainment. She retired in 1964, estimating that she had seen 6,000 films during her 31-year stint at the paper. Her executive editor said "Edith Lindeman made a tremendous contribution to the cultural life of this community.... She'll be remembered especially for the strong coverage she provided for the area's

regional theaters In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...

in their formative years."

Songwriting

Collaborating with composer Carl Stutz, she wrote several dozen popular songs in the 1950s. She said she took up songwriting while driving through

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virgini ...

with her husband. While listening to music on the radio, she said to her husband "I could write better lyrics than that." Her husband, who believed that she could do anything she set her mind to, replied "Well, why don't you?" The result was her first lyric, "Curves in Kentucky", which she took to Stutz, then an announcer at powerhouse radio station WRVA. The song never amounted to much, but Lindeman was convinced that she could write something better. Her better work included " Little Things Mean a Lot", which, as recorded by

Kitty Kallen Kitty Kallen (born Katie Kallen; May 25, 1921 – January 7, 2016) was an American popular singer whose career spanned from the 1930s to the 1960s, to include the Swing era of the Big Band years, the post-World War II pop scene and the early ...

, was the top song of 1954, and " Red Headed Stranger", which became a top hit when recorded by

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country musician. The critical success of the album ''Shotgun Willie'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of '' Red Headed Stranger'' (1975) and ''Stardust'' (1978 ...

. Members of the

Western Writers of America Western Writers of America (WWA), founded 1953, promotes literature, both fictional and nonfictional, pertaining to the American West. Although its founders wrote traditional Western fiction, the more than 600 current members also include historia ...

chose it as one of the Top 100 Western songs of all time. She also wrote the lyrics for "

Blackberry Winter Blackberry winter is a colloquial expression used in Southern United States, south, Midwestern United States, midwest North America; as well as in Europe, Sinosphere Vietnam and East Asia, referring to a cold snap that often occurs in late sprin ...

", which became a back-door million-seller as the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...

of Mitch Miller's recording of " The Yellow Rose of Texas", which became a #1 hit in the U.S. in 1955. Edith Lindeman was honored by the

Songwriters Hall of Fame The Songwriters Hall of Fame (SHOF) is an American institution founded in 1969 by songwriter Johnny Mercer, music publisher/songwriter Abe Olman, and publisher/executive Howie Richmond to honor those whose work, represent, and maintain, the he ...

in 1977. She died in Richmond on December 22, 1984.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lindeman, Edith American theater critics American film critics American women theatre critics American women film critics 1898 births 1984 deaths American women songwriters American women journalists 20th-century American musicians 20th-century American women musicians