Alan Menken - Getty - H 2017
Stefanie Keenan/GettyAlan Menken will be the 2017 recipient of the Johnny Mercer Award at the Songwriters Hall of Fame’s 48th Annual Induction and Awards Dinner, set to take place June 15 at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City. Additional special award honorees will be announced soon.
The Johnny Mercer Award, the highest honor bestowed by the Songwriters Hall of Fame, goes to a songwriter or songwriting team who has already been inducted in a prior year, and whose body of work is of such high quality and impact that it upholds the gold standard set by the legendary Johnny Mercer.
2017 Songwriters Hall of Fame inductees include Babyface, Berry Gordy, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Robert Lamm and James Pankow of Chicago, Max Martin and Jay Z. Caroline Bienstock will receive the Abe Olman Publishing Award; Pitbull will be the first-ever recipient of the Global Ambassador Award; and Ed Sheeran will be honored with the Hal David Starlight Award.
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In making the announcement, SHOF president and CEO Linda Moran said, “We at the Songwriters Hall of Fame are so proud that our 2017 Johnny Mercer Award recognizes the exceptional talent of Alan Menken. With a Tony Award, 11 Grammys and eight Academy Awards already to Alan’s credit, the Johnny Mercer Award is a fitting acknowledgement from the Songwriters Hall of Fame.”
“Alan Menken is a prolific composer whose music has conquered both Hollywood and Broadway. His success in scoring animated musicals like Beauty And The Beast, The Little Mermaid and Aladdin, filling them with unforgettable songs and then adapting them for the Broadway stage, has delighted countless children and adults. Since Alan’s big breakthrough when he teamed up with the late Howard Ashman, he has continued to create enduring melodies for lyrics by iconic lyricists such as Sir Tim Rice, Stephen Schwartz, David Zippel and Lynn Ahrens,” SHOF co-chairs Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff added in a statement.
Winner of the 2012 Tony for the musical Newsies, Menkin has also won eight Oscars, 11 Grammys and seven Golden Globes. His stage musicals include Beauty and The Beast, The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Little Shop of Horrors, Sister Act, A Bronx Tale, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz, God Bless You Mr. Rosewater, Atina: Evil Queen of the Galaxy, Real Life Funnies, Kicks, The Dream on Royal Street, A Christmas Carol, Weird Romance, King David and Leap of Faith. Song and score credits for film musicals also include Pocahontas, Enchanted, Tangled, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Hercules, The Shaggy Dog, Home on the Range, Mirror Mirror and the new live-action Beauty and the Beast.
His individual songs for film include Rocky V — “The Measure of a Man,” Home Alone 2: Lost in New York — “My Christmas Tree,” Life With Mikey — “Cold Enough to Snow,” Noel — “Winter Light,” Captain America: First Avenger — “Star Spangled Man” and Sausage Party — “The Great Beyond.” Television credits include writing songs for Sesame Street, the ABC miniseries Lincoln, a musical episode of The Neighbors, the ABC series Galavant and the Disney Channel’s Tangled. His chart-topping songs have included “Beauty and the Beast,” “A Whole New World,” “Colors of the Wind” and “Go the Distance.”
