Biography
Oscar Hammerstein II was an American lyricist and librettist. Born on 12 July 1895 in Harlem, New York City, he came from a theatrical family; his grandfather Oscar Hammerstein I was an opera impresario and his uncle Arthur a Broadway producer. He studied at Columbia University and briefly attended law school before entering the theatre as a stage manager for his uncle.
Hammerstein wrote books and lyrics for numerous musicals, collaborating early with Otto Harbach and Jerome Kern on works including Show Boat (1927). His most celebrated partnership was with composer Richard Rodgers, beginning in 1943. Together they created Oklahoma! (1943), Carousel (1945), South Pacific (1949), The King and I (1951), and The Sound of Music (1959), among others. The 1965 film adaptation of The Sound of Music credits him for the music and lyrics.
Hammerstein received two Academy Awards for Best Original Song and multiple Tony Awards. He died of cancer on 23 August 1960 in Doylestown, Pennsylvania.
