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Kander and Ebb

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Songwriters

The Resume

Why they might be annoying:

    They foisted Liza Minnelli on an unsuspecting public by writing her Broadway debut.
    When they gave interviews Kander did most of the talking (Ebb's voice was kinda nasal).
    They wrote songs for the underwhelming Funny Girl sequel - 'Funny Lady' (but still managed to get Oscar nominations out of it!).
    They initially resented that Robert De Niro rejected their original theme for 'New York, New York' as 'weak' - mainly because the critique came from 'an actor' (they rewrote it and it became the biggest hit of their career).
    Their musical about The Scottsboro Boys met with protests outside the Lyceum Theatre in 2010 after it was revealed that it featured blackface in the final number (albeit used in an ironic manner by black performers and not at all condoning its usage).
    Their song 'Tomorrow Belongs to Me' from Cabaret has unfortunately been appropriated by real white nationalists as an unofficial anthem and has been covered by neo-Nazi bands.

Why they might not be annoying:

    Kander started out as a rehearsal pianist for the original Broadway run of 'West Side Story.'
    Ebb produced Liza Minnelli's Emmy-winning television special 'Liza with a Z.'
    Their first song collaboration, 'My Coloring Book,' became an instant hit and was nominated for a 1962 Grammy Award.
    Their musical Cabaret was their biggest success with a Broadway run of over 1,100 performances, a Tony Award and an Oscar-winning film adaptation.
    'New York, New York' became a signature song for Frank Sinatra when he covered the song in 1979.
    Liza Minnelli performed 'New York, New York' at Shea Stadium during the first sports event in New York after the September 11, 2001 terror attacks.
    They saw a major resurgence in 2002 after their hit musical 'Chicago' was made into a movie and won Best Picture and they received an Oscar nomination for Best Original Song for 'I Move On.'
    Their final musical, 'Curtains,' was staged in 2006 posthumously, as Ebb had died two years earlier, and was a hit.
    When white nationalist Richard Spencer tried to co-opt 'Tomorrow Belongs to Me,' Kander's nephew responded by noting the song was 'written by a Jew in a same-sex marriage.'

Credit: BoyWiththeGreenHair


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 81 Votes: 55.56% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 5 Votes: 20.0% Annoying