Churchill Kohlman, Date of Birth, Date of Death

Churchill Kohlman

American songwriter

Date of Birth: 28-Jan-1906

Date of Death: 25-May-1983

Profession: composer, songwriter

Nationality: United States

Zodiac Sign: Aquarius

Churchill Kohlman (January 28, 1906 – May 25, 1983) was an African-American songwriter who wrote Johnnie Ray's 1951 hit, "Cry" while working in a Pittsburgh dry cleaning factory as the night watchman.Royalties from "Cry" were the subject of a bitter legal dispute between Kohlman and Perry Alexander, owner of music publisher Mellow Music.
Alexander was ordered by arbitrators to pay Kohlman $15,331.24 to settle the dispute in 1953.Kohlman wrote hundreds of other songs, but none achieved the success of "Cry". Churchill had the following siblings: Homer Kohlman (1907–1985); and Alyse Kohlman Klaytor.
After his success with "Cry", he was a correspondent for Prevue, a Chicago-based show-business magazine.
He married Viola (1915–1995) and had the following children: Phyllis Kohlman O'Leary and Eleanor Kohlman Smith; and Carl Kohlman.
He died under the name Charles Kohlman of a heart attack in 1983, at 77 years old, in the Point Breeze neighborhood of Pittsburgh.
His grave is at Homewood Cemetery in Point Breeze.