Herb Hendler

Who was Herb Hendler?

Herb Hendler was an American record producer and lyricist.

He was director of A&R and sole producer at RCA Victor Records in the 1940s. He produced Perry Como's first hit records and signed Glenn Miller to his final contract. He wrote the lyrics for Rosemary Clooney's first hit, "The Kid's a Dreamer," later a hit for Tony Bennett; also Johnnie Ray’s “Coffee and Cigarettes,” Nat King Cole's "The Magic Tree" and "Hot Toddy," a hit for Ralph Flanagan, Ted Heath and Julie London, recorded by some eighty other artists. He created and managed the Ralph Flanagan Orchestra, which was greatly popular in the early 1950s and had many chart hits, and also managed the Buddy Morrow Orchestra.

Hendler was born in Philadelphia on June 17, 1918. He majored in journalism at the University of Southern California, later transferring to New York University. In the late 1950s he became administrative assistant to the president of Warner Bros. Records and was instrumental in launching Bob Newhart and the Everly Brothers.