Date: May 14, 2009

Hofstra Entertainment Presents a 90th Birthday Tribute to LI Composer Ervin Drake

Sunday, June 7, 2009, at 2 p.m.

Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY … Renowned composer and Long Islander Ervin Drake will be honored at a tribute concert titled Very Good Years, presented by Hofstra Entertainment at the Monroe Lecture Center Theater on Sunday, June 7, 2009, at 2 p.m. Guest vocalists include Broadway veteran and cabaret star KT Sullivan, Emmy-nominated actor John Gabriel and many others accompanied by a six-person musical ensemble (featuring piano, bass, drums, trombone, viola and saxophone).

Tickets for Very Good Years are $20, $17 for senior citizens (over 65) and $15 for matriculated non-Hofstra students with ID. Members of the Hofstra community receive one free ticket upon presentation of a current HofstraCard. For tickets and more information call the Hofstra Box Office at (516) 463-6644 or visit hofstra.edu/hofstraentertainment.

Mr. Drake, former president of the Songwriters Guild of America and a member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame, is known for such songs as “It Was a Very Good Year” (made famous by Frank Sinatra); “Tico-Tico,” “Al Di La,” “Perdido,” “Quando, Quando, Quando,” “I Believe,” and “Good Morning Heartache” (recorded by Billie Holliday, among many others).

From 1948 to 1962 Mr. Drake focused on television work and as writer/composer/producer was involved in more than 700 prime time network programs and 40 specials, working with the top entertainers of the time.

His talents have also been featured on Broadway with the musicals What Make Sammy Run? (composer, lyricist), adapted from the Budd Schulberg novel, and Her First Roman (composer, lyricist, bookwriter), based on George Bernard Shaw’s Caesar and Cleopatra.

The story of Ervin Drake is not only one of music and celebrity but also of rekindled love. Mr. Drake resides in Great Neck with his wife, Edith. The two met when he was a 20-year-old aspiring songwriter, and she was a 17-year-old model and show girl. After three years together they ended their relationship, married others and raised families. The initial heartbreak of losing Edith, inspired Mr. Drake to write the 1946 song “Good Morning Heartbreak.” More than 30 years later, Edith read the obituary for Ervin’s wife. She had also been widowed and called Ervin to pay her condolences. Their romance was shortly thereafter renewed, and they married in 1982.

Hofstra Entertainment is an on-campus production company that has consistently provided unique and thought-provoking theatrical productions and related presentations for more thirty years. Collaborating with the Hofstra Cultural Center, as well as various academic departments including the Department of Drama and Dance, throughout its history, Hofstra Entertainment has produced theater for young people, one-person shows, musical revues, original plays, world premieres, Long Island premieres, concerts, poetry-in-performance presentations and Broadway scale musicals with full orchestras.
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Related Link: Very Good Years: A 90th Birthday Tribute to Ervin Drake