NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Paul Williams (songwriter)

Paul Hamilton Williams (born September 19, 1940, in Omaha, Nebraska) is an American composer, songwriter, and actor. September 19 is the 262nd day of the year (263rd in leap years). ... 1940 (MCMXL) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1940 calendar). ... Nickname: Gateway to the West Location in Nebraska Coordinates: Country United States State Nebraska County Douglas Founded 1854 Incorporated 1857 Mayor Michael Fahey Area - City 307. ...

Film and Television Career

Although predominately known for his music, Paul Williams is also an actor, appearing in films and many television guest appearances, notably as the Faustian record producer Swan in the cult film Phantom of the Paradise, a rock and roll remake of Phantom of the Opera, and as "Virgil", the genius orangutan on Battle for the Planet of the Apes. Williams worked closely with Jim Henson's Henson Productions on The Muppet Movie, most specifically on the soundtrack. Cult film is a colloquial term for a film that has accrued a devoted group of fans. ... Phantom of the Paradise is a 1974 cult film written and directed by Brian De Palma. ... Rock and roll (also spelled Rock n Roll, especially in its first decade), also called rock, is a form of popular music, usually featuring vocals (often with vocal harmony), electric guitars and a strong back beat; other instruments, such as the saxophone, are common in some styles. ... The title character as depicted by Lon Chaney, Sr. ... Battle For the Planet of the Apes (1973) is the fifth and final entry in the Planet of the Apes series. ... For the company founded by Henson, see The Jim Henson Company. ... The Muppet Movie DVD cover The Muppet Movie is the first of a series of live-action musical feature films starring Jim Hensons Muppets. ...

He provided the voice of The Penguin in Batman:The Animated Series. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The Penguin (Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot), is a DC Comics supervillain and an enemy of Batman. ...

He is a member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and his songs have been performed by both pop and country music artists. He has won one Academy Award, two Grammy Awards and several Golden Globes. The Songwriters Hall of Fame is an arm of the National Academy of Popular Music. ... Popular music is music belonging to any of a number of musical styles that are accessible to the general public and are disseminated by one or more of the mass media. ... country music, see Country music (disambiguation) Country music, also known as country and western music or country-western, is a blend of popular musical forms originally found in the Southern United States. ... The references in this article would be clearer with a different and/or consistent style of citation, footnoting or external linking. ... Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (originally called the Gramophone Awards), presented by the Recording Academy (an association of Americans professionally involved in the recorded music industry) for outstanding achievements in the recording industry, is one of four major music awards shows held annually in the United States (the Billboard Music... The Golden Globe Awards are American awards for motion pictures and television programs, given out each year during a formal dinner. ...

Musical career

Williams is responsible for a number of enduring pop hits from the 1970s, including "(Just an) Old Fashioned Love Song", a U.S. top-ten hit for the band Three Dog Night in late 1971, and a number of Carpenters hits, most notably "We've Only Just Begun", which has since become a cover-band standard and de rigueur for weddings throughout North America. An early collaboration with Roger Nichols, "Someday Man", was covered by The Monkees (in which he also auditioned for but did not make it) on a 1969 single, and was the first Monkees' release not published by Screen Gems. Three Dog Night was an American rock and roll band active from 1968 to 1975. ... 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1971 calendar). ... Richard and Karen Carpenter, Carpenters The Carpenters were the biggest selling American artists of the 1970s. ... Weve Only Just Begun is a song first recorded by Carpenters, and still much in demand as a wedding anthem. ... For Roger Nichols the recording engineer, please see Roger Nichols Roger Nichols, born in Missoula, MT, is a Grammy-nominated composer and songwriter. ... The Monkees were a four-man musical band created for an American television series of the same name, which ran on NBC from 1966 to 1968. ... 1969 (MCMLXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1969 calendar). ... Screen Gems is an American subsidiary company of Sony Pictures Entertainments Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group that has served several different purposes for its parent companies over the decades since its incorporation. ...

A frequent cowriter of Williams was musician Kenneth Ascher; their songs together included the popular children's favorite "The Rainbow Connection", sung by Kermit the Frog in The Muppet Movie. Most recently, he collaborated with Scissor Sisters on their sophomore album, Ta-Dah. Kenneth Ascher (born October 26, 1944, Washington, D.C.), also known as Ken or Kenny Ascher, is an American musician (keyboards), songwriter and musical arranger. ... The Rainbow Connection is a popular song originally performed by Kermit the Frog (Jim Henson) in The Muppet Movie in 1979. ... Kermit singing Its Not Easy Bein Green Kermit the Frog (born May 9, 1955 (age 51)[1]) is a fictional character, a Muppet and one of puppeteer Jim Hensons most famous and beloved creations. ... The Muppet Movie DVD cover The Muppet Movie is the first of a series of live-action musical feature films starring Jim Hensons Muppets. ... Ç¢ Scissor Sisters are an American band who formed in 2001, whose style draws from disco, glam-rock/pop and the gay-club scene of New York City. ... Ta-Dah is the second studio album by American 5-piece band Scissor Sisters, released in September 2006. ...

Personal life

Williams has been active in the field of recovery from addictions. Paul Williams is married to writer Mariana Williams. He has two children, Sarah and Cole. Paul's brother, Mentor Williams, is a successful songwriter in his own right and penned Dobie Gray's 1972 hit, "Drift Away." Addiction is a chronic disorder proposed to be precipitated by a combination of genetic, biological/pharmacological and social factors. ... Dobie Gray (born July 26, 1940?) is an African American musician / singer best known for his song Drift Away, which was one of the biggest hits of 1973 and still remains a staple of radio airplay. ... Drift Away is a song by Mentor Williams, originally recorded by Dobie Gray in 1972. ...

Acting career

Movies

The Loved One was also a short movie directed by wrestler Mick Foley chronicling the rise to success of his character Dude Love. ... The Chase may refer to: // Movies A 1946 movie starring Robert Cummings, MichÃ¨le Morgan, and Peter Lorre. ... DVD cover Watermelon Man is a 1970 comedy-drama film directed by Melvin Van Peebles and based on the book The Night the Sun Came out on Happy Hollow Lane by Herman Raucher. ... Battle For the Planet of the Apes (1973) is the fifth and final entry in the Planet of the Apes series. ... Phantom of the Paradise is a 1974 cult film written and directed by Brian De Palma. ... Smokey and the Bandit is a 1977 movie starring Burt Reynolds, Sally Field, Jackie Gleason, Jerry Reed, Pat McCormick, Paul Williams, and Mike Henry. ... The Cheap Detective is a 1978 spoof comedy movie, written by Neil Simon and directed by Robert Moore as a follow-up to their successful Murder By Death. ... The Muppet Movie DVD cover The Muppet Movie is the first of a series of live-action musical feature films starring Jim Hensons Muppets. ... Smokey and the Bandit II on DVD. Smokey and the Bandit II (1980) is the sequel to the 1977 smash movie Smokey and the Bandit. ... Smokey and the Bandit Part Three is the 1983 sequal to Smokey and the Bandit and Smokey and the Bandit II starring Jackie Gleason, Jerry Reed, Paul Williams, Pat McCormick, Mike Henry and Colleen Camp. ... The Doors were an American rock band that formed in 1965 in Los Angeles. ... The Rules of Attraction (2002) is a dark satire based on the novel The Rules of Attraction by Bret Easton Ellis. ... The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement is a sequel of The Princess Diaries which was released in 2004. ...

Plays

Television

He made numerous television appearances in the 1970s and 1980s, including guest appearances on Match Game '79, The Love Boat, The Hardy Boys and The Muppet Show. He has also appeared on an episode of Babylon 5 as the aide to an alien ambassador whose species finalizes treaties and agreements by having sex with the other signees. Williams appeared on an episode of Picket Fences as the brother of the just deceased Ginny Weedon (Zelda Rubinstein). He starred as Ferdinand the Bull in a musical 1/2 hour TV production of the same name written by the Sherman Brothers. The 1970s decade refers to the years from 1970 to 1979, inclusive. ... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ... The Match Game was a long-running American television game show, most often hosted by Gene Rayburn. ... The Love Boat was a TV series set on a cruise ship, which aired on the ABC Television Network from 1977 until 1986. ... The Hardy Boys is a popular series of detective/adventure books for boys chronicling the fictional adventures of teenage brothers Frank and Joe Hardy. ... The Muppet Show was a television program featuring a cast of Muppets (diverse hand-operated puppets, typically with oversized eyes and large moving mouths) produced by Jim Henson and his team from 1976 to 1981. ... Babylon 5 is an epic American science fiction television series created, produced, and largely written by J. Michael Straczynski. ... Picket Fences was a 60-minute drama which ran from 1992 to 1996 on the CBS television network in the United States. ... Zelda Rubinstein (b. ... The Story of Ferdinand (1936) is a childrens book by American writer Munro Leaf, his best-known work. ... Robert B. Sherman & Richard M. Sherman at the London Palladium in 2002 during the premiere of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang: The Stage Musical. ...

He is also known as the voice of the Penguin in Batman: The Animated Series. The Penguin, from Batman #287, May 1977. ... The animated Batman shoots his grappling gun from a rooftop in a scene from the episode, On Leather Wings. ...

Songwriter career

Albums

Notable songs

Weve Only Just Begun is a song first recorded by Carpenters, and still much in demand as a wedding anthem. ... The Rainbow Connection is a popular song originally performed by Kermit the Frog (Jim Henson) in The Muppet Movie in 1979. ...

Film music

The Getaway is a 1972 crime movie, starring Steve McQueen and Ali MacGraw. ... Cinderella Liberty is a 1973 film which tells the story of a sailor who falls in love with a prostitute and becomes a surrogate father for her young son. ... Thunderbolt and Lightfoot is a 1974 film with Clint Eastwood & Jeff Bridges. ... Phantom of the Paradise is a 1974 cult film written and directed by Brian De Palma. ... The Day of the Locust is a 1975 film based on the 1939 novel by American author Nathanael West, set in Hollywood, California during the Great Depression, depicting the alienation and desperation of a disparate group of individuals whose dreams of success have effectively failed. ... Bugsy Malone movie poster Bugsy Malone is a 1976 musical film, very loosely based on events in Chicago, Illinois in the Prohibition era, specifically, the exploits of gangsters like Al Capone. ... Video cover showing Kris Kristofferson and Barbra Streisand The 1976 version, helmed by Frank Pierson and starring Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson, updated the story by bringing it into the rock era. ... The End is a 1978 comedy film, directed by Burt Reynolds and starring Burt Reynolds, Dom DeLuise and Sally Field. ... Saint Agatha (died 251) is a Christian saint. ... The Muppet Movie DVD cover The Muppet Movie is the first of a series of live-action musical feature films starring Jim Hensons Muppets. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Ishtar (Arabic: Ø¹Ø´ØªØ§Ø±) is the Assyrian counterpart to the Sumerian Inanna and to the cognate northwest Semitic goddess Astarte. ... DVD cover The Muppet Christmas Carol was the fourth feature film to star The Muppets, and the first produced after the death of Muppets creator Jim Henson. ...

Television

The Love Boat was a TV series set on a cruise ship, which aired on the ABC Television Network from 1977 until 1986. ... It Takes Two video tape cover // Plot Line of It Takes Two Spoiler warning: It Takes Two is a 1995 movie about when two young girls, who happen to look identical, meet unexpectedly. ... The cover of the Baretta Season 1 DVD set. ... Emmet Otters Jug Band Christmas is a 1977 Christmas special created by Jim Henson, based on a book by Russell and Lillian Hoban. ... For the company founded by Henson, see The Jim Henson Company. ... The Muppet Show was a television program featuring a cast of Muppets (diverse hand-operated puppets, typically with oversized eyes and large moving mouths) produced by Jim Henson and his team from 1976 to 1981. ... The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson was the full name of NBCs The Tonight Show during the years that Johnny Carson hosted. ... The Brady Bunch was a US television situation comedy, based around a large family. ...

External links

Categories: 1940 births | Living people | Best Song Academy Award winning songwriters | American composers | American character actors | People from Omaha, Nebraska | American film actors | American television actors | American voice actors | American songwriters | Hollywood Squares panelists | Songwriters Hall of Fame inductees | Hollywood Walk of Fame The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) is an online database of information about actors, films, television shows, television stars, video games and production crew personnel. ... Danny DeVito as Louie in Taxi. ... The DC Comics superhero Batman (originally and still sometimes referred to as the Batman or the Bat-Man) is a fictional character who first appeared in Detective Comics #27 in May 1939. ... Thomas James Tom Kenny (born on July 13, 1962 in East Syracuse, New York) is an American voice actor who is perhaps best known for his work in the animated series SpongeBob SquarePants, in which he is the voice of the title character, the narrator, Patchy the Pirate, and a...

Contents

Film and Television Career GA_googleFillSlot("encyclopedia_square");

Musical career

Personal life

Acting career

Movies

Plays

Television

Songwriter career

Albums

Notable songs

Film music

Television

External links

Film and Television Career