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LAST NIGHT WHEN WE WERE YOUNG - CONCLUSION
Harold Arlen wrote over 50 songs between 1961 and 1976 and continued to
enjoy a successful career. For example, in 1961 he wrote the music for
Gay Purr-ee and collaborated with Peggy Lee (lyrics) to write Happy
With the Blues. Additionally, he worked with lyricist Dory
Langdon to write So Long, Big Time! in 1963, and Fine
Kind of Freedom in 1965 with lyricist Martin Charnin. He even
completed a work entitled Blues Opera Suite, which premiered
in Minneapolis on August 27, 1957 and was performed by Andre Kostelanetz
at Carnegie Hall with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra on November
2, 1957.
Sadly,
the latter years of Harold's life were not spent basking in the glory
of his success. Harold was distraught when he lost his wife to a brain
tumor. For years, Anya had been having difficulty with speech and motor
control. The once celebrated model had become almost unrecognizable. Yet
Harold's love for her remained constant - with the same intensity as when
he first met her. Anya Taranda Arlen died on March 9, 1970.
After
Anya's death, Harold seemed to lose interest in life. The man who loved
to socialize withdrew from friends and even family. Depressed over Anya's
passing, having difficulty sleeping, and suffering from Parkinson's Disease,
he rarely went out or attended performances. On April 23, 1986, Harold
Arlen succumbed to cancer. He died quietly at home with family in his
apartment on Central Park West in New York City. He was 81 years old.
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