Edward Pola (June 23, 1907 – November 3, 1995) [1] [2] [3] [4] was an actor, radio/ television producer, and songwriter.
Pola was born Sidney Edward Pollacsek [5] in New York City, the son of Ida (Friedmann) and Alexander Pollacsek, who were Hungarian Jews.[ citation needed]
In the 1920s, Pola began to write songs. He scored one of England's first sound films, Harmony Heaven (1930). Toward the end of the decade, he moved to the United States. He produced the radio comedy The Alan Young Show, [6] as well as dramatic radio programs. He continued as a producer, moving to television in the 1950s.
His most famous songs include:
In the 1980s, Pola taught Creative Writing to elementary school students at Smiley Elementary School in Redlands, California.
Pola died in Jackson County, Oregon.
Andy Williams—not Jewish—got a huge hit in 1963 with this classic by Pola, a Hungarian Jew born Sidney Edward Pollacsek, and Wyle, born Bernard Weissman.