August 23: Musical lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II died on this day in 1960...

... he was 65 when he died from cancer.

Born in New York City, Hammerstein His most successful and long running collaboration began when he teamed up with Richard Rodgers to write a musical adaptation of the play "Green Grow the Lilacs," which was entitled "Oklahoma!." They went to produce such classic Broadway musicals as "Carousel," "Allegro," "South Pacific," "The King and I," "Me & Juliet," "Pipe Dream," "Flower Drum Song," and "The Sound of Music" as well as the musical film "State Fair" and the television musical "Cinderella."

Oscar Hammerstein won eight Tony Awards and two Oscars for best original song—in 1941 for "The Last Time I Saw Paris" in the film "Lady Be Good," and in 1945 for "It Might as Well Be Spring" in "State Fair."

In 1950, the team of Rodgers and Hammerstein received The Hundred Year Association of New York's Gold Medal Award "In recognition of outstanding contributions to the City of New York." The team also received a special Pulitzer Prize award for "Oklahoma!" in 1944. The Oscar Hammerstein II Center for Theater Studies at Columbia University was established in 1981 with a $1 million gift from his family.

Press links below to view You Tube videos:
-- "Younger Than Springtime" (South Pacific)

-- "OKLAHOMA - OK!" (OKLAHOMA!)

-- "So Long, Farewell" (Sound of Music)