Richard M. Sherman Dies: ‘Mary Poppins’ & ‘The Jungle Book’ Songwriter Was 95

Dan Clarendon May 26, 2024, 11:14 am

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Richard M. Sherman, a nine-time Academy Award nominee and one of the songwriting brothers behind Disney movies like 1964’s Mary Poppins and 1967’s The Jungle Book, has died at 95.

Sherman died of age-related illness at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Beverly Hills on Saturday, according to a Walt Disney Company announcement. Robert B. Sherman, the other half of the duo, died in 2012.

The Sherman Brothers, who had a big fan in Walt Disney himself, won two Academy Awards for Mary Poppins, taking home the trophies for Best Score – Substantially Original and Best Original Song (for “Chim Chim Cher-ee”).

Richard and Robert wrote more than 200 songs for some 27 films and 24 television productions, Disney reports. Their film credits include The Absent-Minded Professor (1961), The Parent Trap (1961), Summer Magic (1963), The Sword in the Stone (1963), That Darn Cat! (1965), Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree (1966), The Happiest Millionaire (1967), The Aristocats (1970), and Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971).

The brothers left Disney in the early 1970s but kept working on films like Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968), Charlotte’s Web (1973), Tom Sawyer (1973), and Huckleberry Finn (1974).

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The Shermans also wrote music for Disney theme park attractions, including the songs “There’s a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow,” “The Tiki, Tiki, Tiki Room,” and “It’s a Small World.” They’re also immortalized with a storefront at Disneyland’s Main Street, U.S.A., where signage reads “Two Brothers Tunemakers – Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman: We’ll Write Your Tunes For a Song.”

For their musical contributions, the brothers were inducted as Disney Legends in 1990, inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2005, and awarded the National Medal of the Arts in 2008. And in the 2013 film Saving Mr. Banks, Robert and Richard were respectively portrayed by B.J. Novak and Jason Schwartzman.

“Richard Sherman was the embodiment of what it means to be a Disney Legend, creating along with his brother Robert the beloved classics that have become a cherished part of the soundtrack of our lives,” Disney CEO Bob Iger said in a statement. “From films like Mary Poppins and The Jungle Book to attractions like ‘It’s a Small World,’ the music of the Sherman Brothers has captured the hearts of generations of audiences. We are forever grateful for the mark Richard left on the world, and we extend our deepest condolences to his family.”