Birthday profile

Mort Shuman

Mort Shuman, American singer-songwriter and pianist (died 1991)

Born
November 12, 1938
Died
November 2, 1991
Zodiac sign
Scorpio
Birth year
1938

About Mort Shuman

Mortimer Shuman was an American singer, pianist and songwriter, best known as co-writer of many 1960s rock and roll hits, including "Viva Las Vegas". He also wrote and sang many songs in French, such as "Le Lac Majeur", "Papa-Tango-Charly", "Sha Mi Sha", "Un Été de Porcelaine", and "Brooklyn by the Sea" which became hits in France and several other European countries. Shuman wrote over 500 songs, including those for Ben E. King, Elvis Presley, Ray Charles, Andy Williams, and Janis Joplin. He was also responsible for the English-language production of Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris. Shuman was posthumously inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1992 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010. In Harlem, Shuman became a fan of rhythm and blues music in the clubs, and after meeting Doc Pomus, the two men teamed up to compose for Aldon Music at offices in New York City's Brill Building.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

The world when Mort Shuman was born

Mort Shuman was born in 1938. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1938

  • #1 song"A-Tisket, A-Tasket" – Ella Fitzgerald
  • Top movieThe Adventures of Robin Hood
  • Best-selling bookRebecca – Daphne du Maurier

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentJoe Louis knocks out Max Schmeling in round 1
  • Top headlineWar of the Worlds broadcast causes nationwide panic
  • Technology milestoneNuclear fission discovered
  • Defining fadSuperman debuts in Action Comics #1
  • Notable inventionInstant coffee (Nescafé)
  • World population2.30 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderFranklin D. Roosevelt
  • Sports championNew York Yankees (World Series)
  • U.S. population129.8M

1938 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Mort Shuman's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19382026
Gas$0.20$3.45/gal
Average home$5,100$435,000
Average income$2,800$67,500
Minimum wage$0.25$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket$0.25$11.95
Postage stamp$0.03$0.73
Population129.8M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, MusicBrainz, Wikidata. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.