Felix William Bernard (April 28, 1897 – October 20, 1944) was an American conductor, pianist and a composer of popular music. His writing credits include the popular songs "

Winter Wonderland "Winter Wonderland" is a song written in 1934 by Felix Bernard and lyricist Richard Bernhard Smith. Due to its seasonal theme, it is often regarded as a Christmas song in the Northern Hemisphere. Since its original recording by Richard Himb ...

" (with lyricist Richard Bernhard Smith) and "

Dardanella "Dardanella" is a popular song published in 1919 by McCarthy & Fisher, Inc., a firm owned by Fred Fisher, lyricist, for music composed by Felix Bernard and Johnny S. Black. Bandleader Ben Selvin (1898–1980) recorded "Dardanella" for several ...

Biography

Felix Bernard (Bernhardt) was born to a Jewish family in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

on April 28, 1897, and died in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, California, on October 20, 1944. A professional pianist from childhood, his early musical studies were with his father, and his formal musical education was from

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (; RPI) is a private university, private research university in Troy, New York, United States. It is the oldest technological university in the English-speaking world and the Western Hemisphere. It was establishe ...

and CR. Bernard wrote professional one-act musical comedies for

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment which began in France in the middle of the 19th century. A ''vaudeville'' was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a drama ...

, and he toured throughout the United States with the Orpheum and

Keith Vaudeville Circuit Benjamin Franklin Keith (January 26, 1846 – March 26, 1914) was an American vaudeville theater owner, who played an important role in the evolution of variety theater into vaudeville. Biography Early years Keith was born in Hillsborough, ...

, and also abroad. Bernard worked as a pianist for dance orchestras and music publishers before forming his own band. His also had his own radio show which he produced. Best known as a composer, Bernard found success writing musical material for artists such as

Al Jolson Al Jolson (born Asa Yoelson, ; May 26, 1886 – October 23, 1950) was a Lithuanian-born American singer, comedian, actor, and vaudevillian. Self-billed as "The World's Greatest Entertainer," Jolson was one of the United States' most famous and ...

Nora Bayes Nora Bayes (born Rachel Eleonora "Dora" Goldberg; October 3, 1880March 19, 1928) was an American singer and vaudeville performer who was popular internationally between the 1900s and 1920s. She is credited with co-writing the song " Shine On, Har ...

Eddie Cantor Eddie Cantor (born Isidore Itzkowitz; January 31, 1892 – October 10, 1964) was an American comedian, actor, dancer, singer, songwriter, film producer, screenwriter and author. Cantor was one of the prominent entertainers of his era. Some of h ...

, Marilyn Miller, and Sophie Tucker. In 1934 Bernard joined ASCAP where his chief musical collaborators were

Sam Coslow Sam Coslow (December 27, 1902 – April 2, 1982) was an American songwriter, singer, film producer, publisher and market analyst. Coslow was born in New York City. He began writing songs as a teenager. He contributed songs to Broadway revues, ...

, L. Wolfe Gilbert, Richard Bernhard Smith, and Johnny Black. Other musical compositions by Felix Bernard include "The Mailman's Got My Letter", "Jane", "You Opened My Eyes", "I'd Rather Be Me", "Cutest Kid in Town", "Tom Thumb and Tiny Teens", "What Am I Goin' to Do for Lovin'?", "Painter In The Sky", "Twenty One Dollars a Day Once a Month", and "The Whistlin' Cowboy".

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bernard, Felix 1897 births 1944 deaths 20th-century American composers 20th-century American conductors (music) 20th-century American Jews 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century American pianists American male composers American male conductors (music) American male pianists 20th-century male pianists American male songwriters Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale) Composers from New York City Jewish American songwriters Songwriters from New York (state) 20th-century American songwriters