# Alan and Marilyn Bergman
**Alan and Marilyn Bergman** were an American husband-and-wife lyric-writing team whose songs for film, television, and the recording studio made them one of the most successful lyric partnerships in popular music. Alan Bergman (September 11, 1925 – July 17, 2025) and Marilyn Bergman (born Marilyn Keith, November 10, 1929 – January 8, 2022) wrote the lyrics to Oscar-winning songs including "[The Windmills of Your Mind](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-windmills-of-your-mind)," "The Way We Were," and the score for *Yentl*, and to standards such as "Nice 'n' Easy" and "You Don't Bring Me Flowers."[1](https://apnews.com/article/77e4bf9dd39a17a26b3fc2f809a7efee) • [2](https://www.songhall.org/profiles/alan-bergman)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Partnership | Married in 1958; wrote together for more than 50 years, providing words and occasional music for hundreds of songs[1](https://apnews.com/article/77e4bf9dd39a17a26b3fc2f809a7efee) |
| Academy Awards | Three Oscars: "The Windmills of Your Mind" (1968), "The Way We Were" (1975), and the score for *Yentl* (1984); 16 nominations in all[2](https://www.songhall.org/profiles/alan-bergman) • [1](https://apnews.com/article/77e4bf9dd39a17a26b3fc2f809a7efee) |
| Other major awards | Two Grammys, four Emmys, and the Songwriters Hall of Fame Johnny Mercer Award (1997)[1](https://apnews.com/article/77e4bf9dd39a17a26b3fc2f809a7efee) • [2](https://www.songhall.org/profiles/alan-bergman) |
| Signature song | "The Way We Were," recorded by Barbra Streisand for the 1973 film, was the top-selling song of 1974[1](https://apnews.com/article/77e4bf9dd39a17a26b3fc2f809a7efee) |
| Industry leadership | Marilyn was elected President of ASCAP in 1994 and served on its board as president for over 16 years[3](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/marilyn-alan-bergman-mn0001200276/biography) • [4](https://www.namm.org/library/oral-history/marilyn-bergman) |
| Deaths | Marilyn died January 8, 2022, in Los Angeles at 93; Alan died July 17, 2025, at his home in Los Angeles at 99[5](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/marilyn-bergman-mn0000222469) • [1](https://apnews.com/article/77e4bf9dd39a17a26b3fc2f809a7efee) |
## Lives and how the team formed
Both were born in Brooklyn, New York, in the same hospital, four years apart, and grew up in the same neighborhood; they did not meet until they were adults, after both had moved to California in 1950.[1](https://apnews.com/article/77e4bf9dd39a17a26b3fc2f809a7efee) Alan had wanted to be a songwriter since boyhood, majored in music and theater at the [University of North Carolina](https://www.edgepedia.org/university-of-north-carolina), and received a master's degree from UCLA, where he befriended the composer [Johnny Mercer](https://www.edgepedia.org/johnny-mercer) and became his protégé.[1](https://apnews.com/article/77e4bf9dd39a17a26b3fc2f809a7efee) Marilyn, born Marilyn Keith, attended the High School of Music and Art and studied English and psychology at New York University before moving to Los Angeles.[5](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/marilyn-bergman-mn0000222469) • [6](https://www.songhall.org/profiles/marilyn-bergman)
**The meeting.** In the mid-1950s both were writing lyrics, separately, for the composer Lew Spence: Alan in the morning, Marilyn in the afternoon. Spence introduced them, and the three wrote a song that same day. Alan recalled that it "wasn't very good, but we sure enjoyed the process," and the partnership continued from there.[7](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-10-11-ca-405-story.html) They married in 1958.[1](https://apnews.com/article/77e4bf9dd39a17a26b3fc2f809a7efee)
Their first commercial breakthrough came in the late 1950s with the calypso hit "Yellow Bird," lyrics written for an adaptation of a West Indian folk tune.[1](https://apnews.com/article/77e4bf9dd39a17a26b3fc2f809a7efee) • [8](https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/dictionaries-thesauruses-pictures-and-press-releases/bergman-alan-and-marilyn-keith) Their first screen collaboration was the title song for the film *The Marriage-Go-Round* (1960), composed by Spence and sung by [Tony Bennett](https://www.edgepedia.org/tony-bennett).[9](https://tv.apple.com/us/person/alan-bergman/umc.cpc.15pecd21793m3puzi2m6mgm1h) • [8](https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/dictionaries-thesauruses-pictures-and-press-releases/bergman-alan-and-marilyn-keith)
## Film and television work
The Bergmans wrote lyrics for songs used in at least 50 feature films released between 1960 and 1996, usually a title or theme song heard under the credits or in a key sequence of a nonmusical film.[8](https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/dictionaries-thesauruses-pictures-and-press-releases/bergman-alan-and-marilyn-keith) Their breakthrough was *In the Heat of the Night* (1967), whose title song was written with [Quincy Jones](https://www.edgepedia.org/quincy-jones) and performed by [Ray Charles](https://www.edgepedia.org/ray-charles).[5](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/marilyn-bergman-mn0000222469)
**The Legrand and Hamlisch collaborations.** "The Windmills of Your Mind," written with [Michel Legrand](https://www.edgepedia.org/michel-legrand) for *The Thomas Crown Affair* (1968), began a long-term collaboration with Legrand and won the Bergmans their first Academy Award for Best Song on April 14, 1969.[8](https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/dictionaries-thesauruses-pictures-and-press-releases/bergman-alan-and-marilyn-keith) Alan later credited the assignment itself: director [Norman Jewison](https://www.edgepedia.org/norman-jewison) wanted a song that underlined the anxiety the character was feeling at that moment, and without that scene "we would never have written 'The Windmills of Your Mind.'"[7](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-10-11-ca-405-story.html) With Marvin Hamlisch they wrote "The Way We Were" (1973), a number one pop hit for [Barbra Streisand](https://www.edgepedia.org/barbra-streisand) that also earned an Academy Award, and the television themes for the 1970s sitcoms *Maude* and *Good Times* for producer Norman Lear.[5](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/marilyn-bergman-mn0000222469) • [1](https://apnews.com/article/77e4bf9dd39a17a26b3fc2f809a7efee)
Other well-known songs include "How Do You Keep the Music Playing?" from *Best Friends* (1982), "The Way He Makes Me Feel" and "Papa, Can You Hear Me?" from *Yentl* (1983), "What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life?" from *The Happy Ending* (1969), and "It Might Be You" from *Tootsie*.[3](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/marilyn-alan-bergman-mn0001200276/biography) • [2](https://www.songhall.org/profiles/alan-bergman) Beyond film, they wrote the Broadway musical *Ballroom*, provided lyrics for the symphony *Visions of America*, and wrote for singers including [Frank Sinatra](https://www.edgepedia.org/frank-sinatra), Michael Jackson, and Tony Bennett.[1](https://apnews.com/article/77e4bf9dd39a17a26b3fc2f809a7efee)
## Working method
The Bergmans wrote together in the same room, often arriving at the same word at the same time; Alan likened the division of labor to housework, "one washes, one dries," which became the title of a song they wrote for a Hamlisch melody.[1](https://apnews.com/article/77e4bf9dd39a17a26b3fc2f809a7efee) Alan described the lyricist's task as finding words already latent in the melody: "There are words on the tips of those notes, and it's our job to find them."[7](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-10-11-ca-405-story.html) He also held that good songs are rewritten rather than written, calling rewriting the hardest part of the craft.[7](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-10-11-ca-405-story.html)
## Awards and industry roles
The Bergmans' honors include three Academy Awards, two Grammys, and four Emmys, the latter including awards for the television movies *Sybil* and *Queen of the Stardust Ballroom*.[1](https://apnews.com/article/77e4bf9dd39a17a26b3fc2f809a7efee) • [3](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/marilyn-alan-bergman-mn0001200276/biography) They were inducted into the [Songwriters Hall of Fame](https://www.edgepedia.org/songwriters-hall-of-fame) in 1980 according to the Hall of Fame itself and the NAMM oral history, though AllMusic gives 1979; in 1997 they received the Hall's Johnny Mercer Award.[2](https://www.songhall.org/profiles/alan-bergman) • [4](https://www.namm.org/library/oral-history/marilyn-bergman) • [3](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/marilyn-alan-bergman-mn0001200276/biography)
Marilyn was elected President of ASCAP, the [American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers](https://www.edgepedia.org/american-society-of-composers-authors-and-publishers), in 1994 and served for over 16 years, working for the rights of songwriters and composers.[3](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/marilyn-alan-bergman-mn0001200276/biography) • [4](https://www.namm.org/library/oral-history/marilyn-bergman) In 1992 Alan became president of the Academy Foundation, the educational and cultural arm of the [Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences](https://www.edgepedia.org/academy-of-motion-picture-arts-and-sciences).[3](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/marilyn-alan-bergman-mn0001200276/biography)
## Later years
Barbra Streisand remained their most frequent collaborator and close friend; her 2011 album *What Matters Most* consisted of Bergman songs, ten of which she had not previously recorded.[1](https://apnews.com/article/77e4bf9dd39a17a26b3fc2f809a7efee) • [10](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-xpm-2011-aug-31-la-et-bergmans-20110831-story.html) Alan released the vocal album *Lyrically, Alan Bergman* in 2007, singing songs he had written with Marilyn.[1](https://apnews.com/article/77e4bf9dd39a17a26b3fc2f809a7efee) Marilyn died on January 8, 2022; Alan continued writing songs until shortly before his death on July 17, 2025, and was survived by a daughter, Julie Bergman, and a granddaughter.[1](https://apnews.com/article/77e4bf9dd39a17a26b3fc2f809a7efee)
## References
1. [Alan Bergman, Oscar-winning lyricist who helped write 'The Way We Were,' dies at 99, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/77e4bf9dd39a17a26b3fc2f809a7efee)
2. [Alan Bergman, Songwriters Hall of Fame](https://www.songhall.org/profiles/alan-bergman)
3. [Marilyn & Alan Bergman Biography, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/marilyn-alan-bergman-mn0001200276/biography)
4. [Marilyn Bergman Oral History, NAMM](https://www.namm.org/library/oral-history/marilyn-bergman)
5. [Marilyn Bergman Biography, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/marilyn-bergman-mn0000222469)
6. [Marilyn Bergman, Songwriters Hall of Fame](https://www.songhall.org/profiles/marilyn-bergman)
7. [Partner in Rhyme: Celebrated Lyricist Alan Bergman Takes the Stage, Los Angeles Times](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-10-11-ca-405-story.html)
8. [Bergman, Alan and Marilyn (Keith), Encyclopedia.com](https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/dictionaries-thesauruses-pictures-and-press-releases/bergman-alan-and-marilyn-keith)
9. [Alan Bergman Movies and Shows, Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/us/person/alan-bergman/umc.cpc.15pecd21793m3puzi2m6mgm1h)
10. [Alan and Marilyn Bergman give Streisand more to sing about, Los Angeles Times](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-xpm-2011-aug-31-la-et-bergmans-20110831-story.html)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musicians and ensembles › Individual musical biographies › Songwriters and record producers*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 19, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 19, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license