# Edward Laska > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Edward_Laska > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Edward_Laska.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Laska > Source revision: 1357231494 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) '''Edward Laska''' (January 3, 1894 - April 27, 1959) was an American [songwriter](/source/songwriter) who worked as both a [composer](/source/composer) and [lyricist](/source/lyricist) in [Tin Pan Alley](/source/Tin_Pan_Alley). He wrote the lyrics to the hit songs "How'd You Like to Spoon With Me?" (1905) and "The Alcholic Blue" (1919). Also a [playwright](/source/playwright), his play ''We've Got to Have Money'' was staged on [Broadway](/source/Broadway_theatre) in 1923. He was the longtime director of the [Dramatists Guild of America](/source/Dramatists_Guild_of_America). ==Life and career== Edward Laska was born on January 3, 1894 in New York City.{{sfn|American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers|1952|page=294}} He was educated in [New York City Public Schools](/source/New_York_City_Public_Schools) and at the [City College of New York](/source/City_College_of_New_York).{{sfn|American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers|1952|page=294}} He was a [Tin Pan Alley](/source/Tin_Pan_Alley) songwriter{{sfn|Muir|2024|page=44}} who sold his first song, "Tulips" in 1903. He contributed the lyrics to the hit song "How'd You Like to Spoon With Me?" (music by [Jerome Kern](/source/Jerome_Kern)) which was introduced in the Broadway musical ''[The Earl and the Girl](/source/The_Earl_and_the_Girl)'' (1905).{{sfn|Dietz|2022|page=322}} {{sfn|Muir|2024|page=44}} In 1914 he was a founding member of the [American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers](/source/American_Society_of_Composers%2C_Authors_and_Publishers). With [Albert Von Tilzer](/source/Albert_Von_Tilzer) he co-wrote the hit song "The Alcoholic Blues" (1919) which by the end of 1920 had been recorded 22 times by a variety of artists.{{sfn|Muir|2024|page=44}} Laska wrote the play ''We've Got to Have Money'' which was staged on Broadway at the [Playhouse Theatre](/source/Playhouse_Theatre_(New_York_City)) in 1923.{{sfn|Hischak|2009|page=501}} He was the longtime director of the [Dramatists Guild of America](/source/Dramatists_Guild_of_America).{{sfn|American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers|1952|page=294}} Laska died at [Trafalgar Hospital](/source/Trafalgar_Hospital) in New York City on April 27, 1959 at the age of 75.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1959/04/29/archives/edward-laska-l-song-writer-751-composer-lyrof-many-works.html|title=Edward Laska, Songwriter, 75|work=[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)|date=April 29, 1959|page= 33}} ==References== ===Citations=== {{reflist}} ===Bibliography=== *{{cite book|title=The ASCAP Biographical Dictionary of Composers, Authors and Publishers|url=https://archive.org/details/ascapbiographica00amer_1/mode/2up?q=%22Laska%2C+Edward%22|chapter=Laska, Edward|author=[American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers](/source/American_Society_of_Composers%2C_Authors_and_Publishers)|editor-first=Daniel I.|editor-last=McNamara|publisher=Thomas Y. Crowell Company|year=1952}} *{{cite book|first1=Dan|last1=Dietz|title=The Complete Book of 1900s Broadway Musicals|publisher=[Rowman & Littlefield Publishers](/source/Rowman_%26_Littlefield_Publishers)|year=2022|isbn=9781538168943}} *{{cite book|last=Hischak|first=Thomas S.|url=https://archive.org/details/broadwayplaysmus0000hisc/mode/2up|title=Broadway Plays and Musicals: Descriptions and Essential Facts of More Than 14,000 Shows through 2007|publisher=[McFarland & Company](/source/McFarland_%26_Company)|year=2009|isbn=978-0786497546}} *{{cite book|title=Long Lost Blues: Popular Blues in America, 1850-1920|first= Peter C.|last= Muir|year=2024|isbn= 9780252056048|publisher=[University of Illinois Press](/source/University_of_Illinois_Press)}} ==External links== *{{IBDB name|id=5290}} *{{IMDb name|id=0489588}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Laska, Edward}} Category:1894 births Category:1959 deaths Category:20th-century American dramatists and playwrights Category:20th-century American male composers Category:American male lyricists Category:American male songwriters Category:City College of New York alumni Category:Musicians from New York City Category:Writers from New York City --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Edward Laska](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Laska) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Laska?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.