Jimmy Berg (Samuel Weinberg)

1909 Kolomea -1988 New York
Jimmy Berg / Samuel (Symson) Weinberg, born October 23, 1909 in Kolomea, died April 4, 1988 New York, journalist, composer, tester, radio editor, music publisher. Grew up in Wiener Neustadt and Vienna, one of his cousins was the composer Robert Starer. Sports and local reporter for 'Wiener Montagsblatt'. Music studies with Erwin Marcus. Jimmy Berg writes popular music, lyrics for popular hits and cabaret, 1927 he is involved in 'Jüdisch-Politisches Kabarett of Oskar Teller; 1931 in Berlin as journalist, creating also German versions of US-american hits for Marks Music Corp, New York, and Irving Berlin Inc. 1933 return to Vienna, music director and principal composer cabaret 'ABC im Regenbogen', cooperation with Jura Soyfer, music for Jura Soyfer's plays 'Weltuntergang' and 'Astoria'; establishment of his own music publishing company Ibis. 1938 exile to the USA via Great Britain. After first successes in New York, also on Broadway - 1939 Revue 'From Vienna' , participation in Jewish-political cabaret 'Die Arche', 1942 Washington 'DC Melody' (directed by Maria Ley Piscator and Leon Askin), composer for Fred Fassler, Else Kaufmann, Charlie Brock, sketches for Fritz Spielmann, Armin Berg a. o., after 1945 'Short operettas' for Vienna Café New York, the big breakthrough failes to appear. In 1942 Jimmy Berg marries Viennese amateur singer Gertrud/Trude Berg, née Hammerschlag in New York; he works as a warehouseman, clerk in a tar factory, and writes theatre reviews for 'Aufbau'. On the long end he has to abandon the career of a free-lance composer and author, and from 1947 to 1974 he is radio editor for 'The Voice of America' as director of the 'Austrian desk'. Jimmy Berg's musical estate is located at the Österreichische Exilbibliothek in the Literaturhaus Wien. Update Primavera Driessen Gruber January 12, 2014