Jay Gorney (1894 - June 14, 1990) was an American theater and film song writer. He was born Abraham Jacob Gornetzsky in Bialystock, Russia (now part of Poland) on December 12, 1894. In 1906, he witnessed the Bialystock pogrom which forced his family into hiding for nearly two weeks, after which they fled to the United States. His family settled in Detroit, Michigan where his father became an engineer at the newly formed Ford Motor Company. His mother bought a piano for her children. After two years of lessons, at age 13, Gorney was offered a job as a pianist at a local nickelodeon.
He worked his way through the University of Michigan and later law school, as a pianist. His studies were interrupted by World War I, during which he enlisted in the Navy. After graduating, he practice law only briefly, but turned instead to his love of music, relocating with his wife to New York City, where he began his song writing career on Tin Pan Alley. He contributed numerous songs to musicals by the Shubert brothers. Later, Ira Gershwin introduced him to lyricist Yip Harburg, who became a frequent collaborator. The pair's most famous song, "Brother Can You Spare A Dime" first appeared in the 1932 Shubert production of New Americana.
Gorney's daughter Karen Lynn Gorney is an actress and dancer, was part of the original cast of All My Children and played opposite John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever.
Gorney's 2005 biography, Brother, Can You Spare a Dime? The Life of Composer Jay Gorney, was written by his wife Sondra.
External links
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- SondraGorney.com - Website of Jay Gorney's widow, Sondra, featuring information on her late husband
- Jay Gorney's of scores are housed in the Music Division of The New York Public Library for the Peforming Arts
- Jay Gorney's papers are housed in the Billy Rose Theatre Collection of The New York Public Library for the Peforming Arts