Kermit Goell (1915 – December 4, 1997) was an American songwriter and archaeologist.

Biography

Born in Brooklyn, Goell received his

BSC A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

in agriculture from

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to ...

and served in the

Army Air Force The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

s during World War II. As an amateur archeologist Goell helped excavate several ancient sites in Turkey with his archeologist sister,

Theresa Goell Theresa Bathsheba Goell (July 17, 1901 – December 18, 1985) was an American archaeologist, best known for directing excavations at Nemrud Dagh in south-eastern Turkey. Born in New York, she earned a BA at Radcliffe College, then graduated from ...

. "Huggin' and Chalkin'", Goell's song written with

Clancy Hayes Clarence Leonard Hayes (November 14, 1908 – March 13, 1972) was an American jazz vocalist and banjo player. Early life Hayes was born in Caney, Kansas, on November 14, 1908. As a child, he learned the drums, then switched to guitar and banjo. ...

, was recorded by

Kay Kyser James Kern Kyser (June 18, 1905 – July 23, 1985), known as Kay Kyser, was an American bandleader and radio personality of the 1930s and 1940s. Early years James Kern Kyser was born in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, the son of pharmacists Emily ...

Hoagy Carmichael Hoagland Howard Carmichael (November 22, 1899 – December 27, 1981) was an American musician, composer, songwriter, actor and lawyer. Carmichael was one of the most successful Tin Pan Alley songwriters of the 1930s, and was among the firs ...

and

Johnny Mercer John Herndon Mercer (November 18, 1909 – June 25, 1976) was an American lyricist, songwriter, and singer, as well as a record label executive who co-founded Capitol Records with music industry businessmen Buddy DeSylva and Glenn E. Wallich ...

, and his "One Finger Melody" was a hit for Frank Sinatra. Goell was the lyricist of the 1947 hit ''

Near You "Near You" is a popular song written and originally recorded by Francis Craig and His Orchestra at Castle Studio in 1947, with lyrics by Kermit Goell, that has gone on to become a pop standard. Background The recording by Francis Craig (t ...

'' with music by

Francis Craig Francis Craig (September 10, 1900 – November 19, 1966) was an American songwriter, honky tonk piano player, and leader of a Nashville dance band. His works included "Dynamite" and "Near You", the latter being the first Billboard #1 hit out of ...

. "Near You" was a hit for Craig and his band as well as the

Andrews Sisters The Andrews Sisters were an American close harmony singing group of the swing and boogie-woogie eras. The group consisted of three sisters: contralto LaVerne Sophia Andrews (July 6, 1911 – May 8, 1967), soprano Maxene Anglyn Andrews (January ...

and pianist Roger Williams a decade later. In 1947 ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' reported that Goell's lawyers had written to Craig accusing him of portraying himself as the sole author of "Near You". Goell himself was sued later that year over the authorship of "Huggin' and Chalkin'". Goell wrote a musical, ''Pocahontas'' which ran for 12 performances at the Lyric Theatre in Hammersmith in 1963. The President of the

Tobacco Institute The Tobacco Institute, Inc. was a United States tobacco industry trade group, founded in 1958 by the American tobacco industry. It was dissolved in 1998 as part of the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement.The Tobacco Institute's headquarters were k ...

, George V. Allen refused funding to the musical because he thought the plot "atrocious". Allen wrote in 1962 that he felt depicting Pocahontas as a "drunken brawler in London horrifies my every emotion...If there were historical justification for Goell's version (which I doubt), I prefer to let such realism rest in the musty archives of the British Museum."

Notable songs

" (with

) *"Huggin' and Chalkin'" (with

) *"One Finger Melody" (with

Al Hoffman Al Hoffman (September 25, 1902 – July 21, 1960) was an American song composer. He was a hit songwriter active in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s, usually co-writing with others and responsible for number-one hits through each decade, many of wh ...

and Fred Spielman)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Goell, Kermit 1915 births 1997 deaths Musicians from Brooklyn United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II Cornell University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences alumni American musical theatre composers American musical theatre lyricists Songwriters from New York (state) 20th-century American composers 20th-century American archaeologists Historians from New York (state)