Charles Kassel Harris (May 1, 1867 – December 2, 1930) was a well regarded American songwriter of popular music. During his long career, he advanced the relatively new genre, publishing more than 300 songs, often deemed by admirers as the "king of the tear jerkers". He is one of the early pioneers of Tin Pan Alley. May 1 is the 121st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (122nd in leap years). ... 1867 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... December 2 is the 336th day (337th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1930 is a common year starting on Wednesday. ... Popular music is music belonging to any of a number of musical styles that are accessible to the general public and mostly distributed commercially. ... Tin Pan Alley was the name given to the collection of New York City-centered music publishers and songwriters who dominated the popular music of the United States of America in the late 19th century and the early 20th century. ...

Biography

Charles was born in Poughkipsie, New York into a family of ten children. His father was a fur trader and moved the family to Saginaw, Michigan and Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he grew up. From his early fascination with the banjo, he wrote his first song Since Maggie Learned To Skate for the play The Skating Rink by Nat Goodwin in 1885. State nickname: Empire State Other U.S. States Capital Albany Largest city New York Governor George Pataki (R) Official languages None (English is de facto) Area 141,205 km² (27th)  - Land 122,409 km²  - Water 18,795 km² (13. ... Saginaw is the name of several places in the United States of America: Saginaw, Michigan Saginaw, Texas This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... State nickname: Wolverine State or Great Lakes State Other U.S. States Capital Lansing Largest city Detroit Governor Jennifer Granholm (D) Official languages English Area 250,941 km² (11th)  - Land 147,255 km²  - Water 103,687 km² (41. ... This article is about Milwaukee in Wisconsin. ... One of the periods of glaciation was also termed the Wisconsin glaciation. ... The banjo is a stringed instrument, derived from the banjar, a stringed instrument of American origins, sometimes called the gourd banjo. The banjar, in turn was based on the African akonting. Some etymologists derive it from a dialectal pronunciation of bandore, though recent research suggests that it may come from... 1885 is a common year starting on Thursday. ...

In 1891, Harris wrote After The Ball, a song about an old man recounting the story of his long-lost love to his niece. He caught the attention of John Philip Sousa, who played the tune at the 1893 World Columbian Exposition in Chicago, boosting sales in excess of five million copies. His next hit Break The News To Mother, about a dying soldier, coincided with the Spanish American War in 1897 and furthered his popularity. 1891 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... John Philip de Sousa John Philip Sousa or John Philip de Sousa (November 6, 1854 - March 6, 1932) is probably the most famous conductor and composer in history of military marches. ... World Columbian Exposition, Chicago, 1893 The World Columbian Exposition (also called The Chicago Worlds Fair), a Worlds fair, was held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbuss discovery of the New World. ... Chicago (officially named the City of Chicago) is the third largest city in the United States (after New York City and Los Angeles), with an official population of 2,896,016, as of the 2000 census. ... The Spanish-American War took place in 1898, and resulted in the United States of America gaining control over the former colonies of Spain in the Caribbean and Pacific. ... 1897 was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ...

Later, Harris begun writing songs for musicals, working with the legendary Oscar Hammerstein to produce the 1904 Oscar Hammerstein's Musical Production. His plays The Scarlet Sisters and What's The Matter With Julius had moderate success. He died in New York City in 1930. There were two notable Oscar Hammersteins: Oscar Hammerstein I, cigar manufacturer, opera impresario, and theatre builder Oscar Hammerstein II, Broadway lyricist, songwriting partner of Jerome Kern and Richard Rodgers This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... 1904 is a leap year starting on a Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... Midtown Manhattan, looking north from the Empire State Building, 2005 New York City (officially named the City of New York) is the most populous city in the United States, and is at the center of international finance, politics, communications, music, fashion, and culture. ... 1930 is a common year starting on Wednesday. ...

External links

• Rather Comprehensive Biography