Edward Eliscu

Edward Eliscu, born April 2, 1902, in Manhattan, New York City, was an American lyricist, playwright, producer, and actor who built a career spanning Broadway, film, and television. His parents, Frank and Sofia Eliscu, had emigrated to the United States from Romania. Eliscu attended DeWitt Clinton High School in Manhattan, where his classmates included future director George Cukor, before going on to City College of New York, from which he earned a Bachelor of Science degree. His older brother, Millton D'Eliscu, pursued a career as a military officer, multi-sport coach, and athletic director.

Eliscu's Broadway career ran from 1924 to 1927 and encompassed several productions, among them the musicals Lady Fingers, Great Day, A Little Racketeer, Frederika, and Meet the People. His work extended beyond performance into writing and producing, with credits that included serving as librettist on Frederika and as producer on Meet the People. His first film score came through a collaboration with composer Vincent Youmans and lyricist Billy Rose on the film adaptation of Great Day, which yielded two widely recognized songs, "More Than You Know" and "Without a Song."

Among his other notable songs were "Carioca," "Flying Down to Rio," "Music Makes Me," "Orchids in the Moonlight," and "Without a Song." His collaborators over the course of his career included Vincent Youmans, Billy Rose, Jay Gorney, Vernon Duke, John Green, Gus Kahn, and Nacio Herb Brown, among others. His film credits included Flying Down to Rio in 1933 and The Gay Senorita in 1945.

In 1931, Eliscu married dancer and journalist Stella Bloch, and the two worked together in the film industry for a number of years. That career came to an end in the 1950s when the House Committee on Un-American Activities named Eliscu, effectively closing off opportunities for him in both film and television. He and his wife subsequently left Hollywood and returned to New York, relocating alongside Bloch's cousin, Mortimer Offner.

Eliscu was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1975. He is the grandfather of music journalist and broadcaster Jenny Eliscu. He died on June 18, 1998, in Newtown, Connecticut, at the age of 96.