Norman Gimbel

Norman Gimbel

Date of Birth: November 16, 1927
Date of Passing: December 19, 2018
Birthplace: Brooklyn, New York
Obituary: Hollywood Reporter

Norman Gimbel was an American songwriter.

Early in his career, Gimbel wrote hit songs for Dean Martin, Andy Williams, and Teresa Brewer.

He also wrote the English lyrics of “The Girl From Ipanema,” Antonio Carlos Jobim’s 1964 bossa nova hit, originally written in Portuguese.

In their 30-year partnership, Gimbel and songwriter Charles Fox wrote more than 150 songs together, earning Oscar nominations for Olivia Newton-John’s “Richard’s Window” (from 1975’s The Other Side of the Mountain) and Barry Manilow’s “Ready to Take a Chance Again” (from 1978’s Foul Play).

Norman Gimbel was an American songwriter.

Early in his career, Gimbel wrote hit songs for Dean Martin, Andy Williams, and Teresa Brewer.

He also wrote the English lyrics of “The Girl From Ipanema,” Antonio Carlos Jobim’s 1964 bossa nova hit, originally written in Portuguese.

In their 30-year partnership, Gimbel and songwriter Charles Fox wrote more than 150 songs together, earning Oscar nominations for Olivia Newton-John’s “Richard’s Window” (from 1975’s The Other Side of the Mountain) and Barry Manilow’s “Ready to Take a Chance Again” (from 1978’s Foul Play).

The duo also composed the themes to the hit television series Wonder Woman, The Paper Chase (for which they received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination), Laverne and Shirley, and Happy Days. The theme songs from Laverne and Shirley and Happy Days became hit records (for Cyndi Grecco and Pratt & McClain, respectively). Gimbel and Fox also wrote “I Got A Name” for Jim Croce, and won the Song of the Year Grammy Award in 1973 for “Killing Me Softly,” recorded by Roberta Flack.

Gimbel was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1984.

Gimbel died December 19, 2018, in Montecito, California. He was 91.

Show more

Awards & Nominations

1 Nomination

The Television Academy database lists prime-time Emmy information. Click here to learn more

Browser Requirements
The TelevisionAcademy.com sites look and perform best when using a modern browser.

We suggest you use the latest version of any of these browsers:

Chrome
Firefox
Safari


Visiting the site with Internet Explorer or other browsers may not provide the best viewing experience.

Close Window