Ethel Merman (1908-1984)
Last updated: 10.01.25
Accis Ethel Merman (born Ethel Agnes Zimmermann) was an American actress, artist, and singer born in Queens, New York City. Influenced by Blossom Seeley, Fanny Brice, Sophie Tucker, and Nora Bayes, she was known .[1] Known primarily for her distinctive, powerful voice and leading roles in musical theatre, she has been called "the undisputed First Lady of the musical comedy stage".[2] Over her distinguished career in theater she became known for her iconic performances in shows such as Anything Goes, Annie Get Your Gun, Gypsy, and Hello, Dolly!. She is also known for her film roles in Anything Goes (1936), Call Me Madam (1953), There's No Business Like Show Business (1954), and It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963). Among many accolades, she received the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her performance in Call Me Madam, a Grammy Award for Gypsy and Drama Desk Award for Hello, Dolly!.Among the many standards introduced by Merman in Broadway musicals are "I Got Rhythm" (from Girl Crazy); "Everything's Coming Up Roses", "Some People", and "Rose's Turn" (from Gypsy-Merman starred as Rose in the original 1959 Broadway production); and the Cole Porter songs "It's De-Lovely" (from Red, Hot and Blue), "Friendship" (from DuBarry Was a Lady), and "I Get a Kick Out of You", "You're the Top", and "Anything Goes" (from Anything Goes). The Irving Berlin song "There's No Business Like Show Business", written for the musical Annie Get Your Gun, became Merman's signature song. -
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Ethel Merman | Biography by wikipedia.org. |
| Title (Release Year) | Composer | Performers | Issue |
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I'll Follow You (1932) | F.E. Ahlert | Ethel Merman | Victor: BS-73709 |
| Title | Attribution | Instruments | Source | Remarks |
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Best Thing For You (1950), The | I. Berlin (music) Ethel Merman (perf.) |
Piano, Voice | Sheet Music Singer |  |
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Doin' What Comes Natur'lly (1946) | I. Berlin (music) Ethel Merman (perf.) |
Piano, Voice | Sheet Music Singer | Pub. |
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Hostess With the Mostes' on the Ball (1950), The | I. Berlin (w&m) Ethel Merman (perf.) |
Piano, Voice | Sheet Music Singer | Pub. |
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You Can't Get a Man With a Gun (1946) | I. Berlin (music) Ethel Merman (perf.) |
Piano, Voice | Sheet Music Singer | Pub. |
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You're Just in Love (1950) | I. Berlin (w&m) Ethel Merman (perf.) |
Piano, Voice | Sheet Music Singer | Pub. |
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Earful of Music (1934), An | W. Donaldson (music) G. Kahn (words) Ethel Merman (perf.) E. Cantor (perf.) Ann Sothern (perf.) |
Piano, Voice | Sheet Music Singer | |
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But in the Morning, No! (1939) | C. Porter (w&m) Bert Lahr (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) Phil Regan (perf.) Betty Grable (perf.) |
Piano, Voice | Sheet Music Singer | |
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⇑Do I Love You? (1939) | C. Porter (music) Bert Lahr (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) Betty Grable (perf.) Benny Baker (perf.) |
Piano, Voice | Sheet Music Singer | Pub. |
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Friendship (1939) | C. Porter (music) Bert Lahr (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) |
Piano, Voice | Sheet Music Singer | Pub. |
The peformer is featured on 49 sheet music/recording covers. It does not claim to be complete and represents only the number of items located. Keys: (w&m)
| Title | Composer | Attribution | Items |
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I'll Follow You (1932) | Frederick Emil Ahlert | Roy Turk (words)
Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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Music Music Everywhere (1932) | Harry Arlen | Ted Koehler (words)
Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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In My Harem (1913) | Irving Berlin | Don Ameche (perf.) Alice Faye (perf.) Jack Haley (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) Tyrone Power (perf.) |
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This Is the Life (1914) | Irving Berlin(w&m) | Don Ameche (perf.) Alice Faye (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) Tyrone Power (perf.) |
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Everybody Step (1921) | Irving Berlin(w&m) | Don Ameche (perf.) Alice Faye (perf.) Jack Haley (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) Tyrone Power (perf.) |
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Pack Up Your Sins and Go to the Devil (1922) | Irving Berlin | Don Ameche (perf.) Alice Faye (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) Tyrone Power (perf.) |
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Some Sunny Day (1922) | Irving Berlin(w&m) | Don Ameche (perf.) Alice Faye (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) Tyrone Power (perf.) |
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Now It Can Be Told (1938) | Irving Berlin(w&m) | Don Ameche (perf.) Alice Faye (perf.) Jack Haley (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) Tyrone Power (perf.) |
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Doin' What Comes Natur'lly (1946) | Irving Berlin | Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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Girl That I Marry (1946), The | Irving Berlin | Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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⇑I Got Lost in His Arms (1946) | Irving Berlin | Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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I Got the Sun in the Morning (1946) | Irving Berlin | Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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They Say It's Wonderful (1946) | Irving Berlin(w&m) | Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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You Can't Get a Man With a Gun (1946) | Irving Berlin | Ethel Merman (perf.) | |
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Best Thing For You (1950), The | Irving Berlin | Ethel Merman (perf.) | |
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Once Upon a Time, Today (1950) | Irving Berlin(w&m) | Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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They Like Ike (1950) | Irving Berlin | Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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Washington Square Dance (1950) | Irving Berlin | Ethel Merman (perf.) Donald O'Connor (perf.) Vera-Ellen Rohe (perf.) George Sanders (perf.) |
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You're Just in Love (1950) | Irving Berlin(w&m) | Ethel Merman (perf.) | |
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If You Believe (1954) | Irving Berlin | Dan Dailey (perf.) Mitzi Gaynor (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) Marilyn Monroe (perf.) Donald O'Connor (perf.) Johnnie Ray (perf.) |
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Hostess With the Mostes' on the Ball (1950), The | Irving Berlin(w&m) | Ethel Merman (perf.) | |
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⇑Eadie Was a Lady (1932) | Nacio Herbert Brown | Buddy Gard DeSylva (words)
Jack Haley (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) Jack Whiting (perf.) |
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Little White Lies (1930) | Walter Donaldson(w&m) | Ethel Merman (perf.) Rudy Vallée (perf.) |
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My Man From Caroline (1930) | Walter Donaldson | Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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Earful of Music (1934), An | Walter Donaldson | Gus Kahn (words)
Eddie Cantor (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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All Through the Night (1922) | Cole Porter | William Gaxton (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) Victor Moore (perf.) |
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Anything Goes (1934) | Cole Porter | William Gaxton (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) Victor Moore (perf.) |
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Gypsy in Me (1934) | Cole Porter | William Gaxton (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) Victor Moore (perf.) |
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I Get a Kick Out of You (1934) | Cole Porter | William Gaxton (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) Victor Moore (perf.) |
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You're the Top (1934) | Cole Porter | William Gaxton (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) Victor Moore (perf.) |
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Down in the Depths (1936) | Cole Porter | Jimmie Durante (perf.) Bob Hope (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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Good-Bye, Little Dream, Good-Bye (1936) | Cole Porter(w&m) | Jimmie Durante (perf.) Bob Hope (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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⇑It's De-Lovely (1936) | Cole Porter | Jimmie Durante (perf.) Bob Hope (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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Ours (1936) | Cole Porter | Jimmie Durante (perf.) Bob Hope (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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Red, Hot and Blue (1936) | Cole Porter | Jimmie Durante (perf.) Bob Hope (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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Ridin' High (1936) | Cole Porter | Jimmie Durante (perf.) Bob Hope (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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You've Got Something (1936) | Cole Porter | Jimmie Durante (perf.) Bob Hope (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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But in the Morning, No! (1939) | Cole Porter(w&m) | Ethel Merman (perf.) | |
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Do I Love You? (1939) | Cole Porter | Bert Lahr (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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Friendship (1939) | Cole Porter | Bert Lahr (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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It Was Written in the Stars (1939) | Cole Porter | Bert Lahr (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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Fresh As a Daisy (1940) | Cole Porter | Joan Carroll (perf.) James Dunn (perf.) Betty Hutton (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) Arthur Treacher (perf.) |
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Let's Be Buddies (1940) | Cole Porter | Joan Carroll (perf.) James Dunn (perf.) Betty Hutton (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) Arthur Treacher (perf.) |
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⇑My Mother Would Love You (1940) | Cole Porter | Joan Carroll (perf.) James Dunn (perf.) Betty Hutton (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) Arthur Treacher (perf.) |
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This Is It (1939) | Arthur Schwartz | Dorothy Fields (words)
Richard Carlson (perf.) Jimmie Durante (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) Tamara Toumanova (perf.) |
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Eadie Was a Lady (1932) | Richard A. Whiting | Nacio Herb Brown (words) B.G. DeSylva (words) Jack Haley (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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Turn Out the Light (1932) | Richard A. Whiting(w&m) | Herb Nacio Brown (co-author) Vincent Youmans (co-author) Jack Haley (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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You're an Old Smoothie (1932) | Richard A. Whiting(w&m) | Herb Nacio Brown (words) B.G. DeSylva (words) Jack Haley (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) |
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Rise 'n' Shine (1932) | Vincent Millie Youmans | B.G. DeSylva (co-author)
Jack Haley (perf.) Ethel Merman (perf.) Jack Whiting (perf.) |