Born Jacob Gershowitz in Brooklyn, NY of Russian-Jewish immigrants. As a boy he could play popular and classical works on his brother Ira's piano by ear. In 1913 he quit school to study music and began composing for Tin Pan Alley; by 1919 he had his first hit "Swanee" and his first Broadway show La, La, Lucille. In less than three weeks in 1924 he composed "Rhapsody in Blue," originally for Paul Whiteman's relatively small swing band and later orchestrated by Ferde Grofé. "Concerto in F" followed the next year, and his musical success Oh, Kay! (which included "Someone to Watch Over Me") the year after that. Success continued: Funny Face (1927), the tone poem American in Paris (1928), Girl Crazy (1929), Of Thee I Sing (1931 the first musical to win the Pulitzer Prize), and the first true American opera, Porgy and Bess (1935), which was the first American opera ever performed at La Scala Opera House in Milan, Italy. Gershwin moved to Hollywood where his songs were performed by Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. In 1937 he fell in love with Paulette Goddard, then married to Charlie Chaplin. He was hearbroken that she would not leave her husband for him. When he fell ill, that June, it was written off as stress. A month later he died of a brain tumor, five hours after a failed surgical attempt to remove it. Funerals were held in both Hollywood and New York. In addition to his original film material, Gershwin music and songs initially written for the concert hall and the musical stage have been posthumously utilized in many Hollywood films. A romanticized story of Gershwin's life and career was told in the film biography RHAPSODY IN BLUE (1945), with Robert Alda portraying the composer. Brother of lyricist Ira Gershwin.    Nominated for Music Best Song 1937: SHALL WE DANCE "They Can't Take That Away from Me"-- Music 1 nomination