September 11, 1925 – July 17, 2025

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Alan Bergman passed away on July 17, 2025 at the age of 99.

He was born on Sept. 11, 1925 in New York City, studying at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and earning a Master’s degree in music at UCLA.

Bergman worked as a director and songwriter in Philadelphia at WCAU-TV in the early 1950s.

He always had a talent for writing lyrics and was encouraged by Johnny Mercer to try his craft in Los Angeles.

He met Marilyn Bergman (who coincidentally had been born at the same hospital as Alan but three years later) in Los Angeles, they formed a songwriting team, and they were married in 1958.

Starting with 1958’s “Sleep Warm” (recorded by Dean Martin) and “Nice ‘n’ Easy” (which Frank Sinatra made famous two years later), the Bergmans had one success after another including writing the lyrics for “The Way We Were,” “How Do You Keep The Music Playing,” “So Many Stars,” ”Where Do You Start,” “The Island,” and the score for Yentil.

They often teamed up with composer Michel Legrand, composing the lyrics to his “The Windmills Of Your Mind,” “What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life,” “Pieces Of Dreams,” “The Summer Knows,” and “You Must Believe In Spring.”

For 60 years, the Bergmans wrote regularly for film, Broadway shows, television and many other functions, earning three Oscars, four Emmys, and two Grammys plus being inducted into the Songwriters Hall Of Fame.

Later in life, Alan Bergman occasionally performed, singing some of the songs that he and Marilyn wrote, making up in his heartfelt interpretations for his limited voice.

Marilyn Bergman passed away in 2022 and Alan Bergman stayed active until his death three years later.

From 2020 when he was 95, Alan Bergman (accompanied by pianist Brian Byrne) sings “The Way We Were.”

-Scott Yanow

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