Nicholas Brodszky

Nicholas "Slug" Brodszky (Russian: Николай Бродский; April 20, 1905 – December 24, 1958) was a composer of popular songs.

Brodszky was born in Odessa (now in Ukraine), into a Jewish family, who moved to Budapest during the civil war in Russia. He spent many years studying and working in Rome, Vienna, Berlin and Budapest. In the 1920s he contributed songs to Viennese operettas. His first film was made in Vienna in 1930 and featured Richard Tauber and Gitta Alpar.[1]

He emigrated to the United States in 1934. He composed for many musical films including The Toast of New Orleans (1950); Rich, Young and Pretty (1951); Because You're Mine (1952); Small Town Girl (1953); The Student Prince (1954); Love Me or Leave Me (1955); and Serenade (1956). He also wrote the score for the Yiddish language film Der Purimspieler (1939).[2]

Among the hit songs he wrote with lyricist Sammy Cahn were "Be My Love," "I'll Never Stop Loving You," "Because You're Mine," "Serenade," and "My Destiny." He wrote three songs for The Student Prince: "Summertime in Heidelberg," "Beloved," and "I'll Walk with God" (with lyrics by Paul Francis Webster) to supplement the Sigmund Romberg musical score for the 1954 filmed version. Recordings of two of his songs, "Be My Love" and "Because You're Mine," were million-seller hits (Gold Records) for the famous 1950s tenor and movie star Mario Lanza on the RCA Victor Red Seal label.[3]

Five of Nicholas Brodszky's musical compositions were nominated for Academy Awards for Best Original Song:

• 1950, "Be My Love"
• 1951, "Wonder Why"
• 1952, "Because You're Mine"
• 1953, "My Flaming Heart"
• 1955, "I'll Never Stop Loving You".[4]

He died in Hollywood, California in 1958, aged 53.

Brodszky was a tunesmith who always needed the help of arrangers and assistants to turn his ideas into finished compositions. These assistants included Roy Douglas, Mischa Spoliansky, Albert Sendrey and Charles Williams, but they were rarely credited. Lionel Salter termed Brodszky a 'near-illiterate.'[1]