Posted: February 6, 2012

In 1960, when I was four, we packed up everything from our Northridge tract home and jumped in the family car. Dad drove us all through Coldwater Canyon and over the hill to the Promised Land - Beverly Hills. Our cocker spaniel, Reddy Boy, and I both stuck our head out the window. I marveled at the palm trees rushing by, the lush emerald lawns, the fancy cars and palatial homes that seemed to have sprung from some fairytale pop-up book. Dad stopped the car in front of one house and said, "If we lived here, we'd be home right now." Then he dangled a front door key and flashed a huge smile.

If you're a "Mary Poppins" fan, you'll remember that in "The Life I Lead," Mr. Banks sings --

At six-o-one, I march through my door ...

That was Dad's homage to our new home at 601 N. Oakhurst Drive.



My dad, I should explain, is Robert B. Sherman, one of the Sherman Brothers who composed so many wonderful songs for Walt Disney's movies, television shows, stage plays, Disneyland and other Theme Parks. Some highlights of their Disney career include the song scores to "Mary Poppins," "The Jungle Book,"Bedknobs and Broomsticks," and the "Winnie the Pooh" film series, as well as "The Tiki Tiki Tiki Room" and "There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow" for the Theme Parks. And, of course, "It's a Small World." Yes, okay, they're the guys.



Note: The above list only scratches the surface of my dad and uncle's enormous body of work, from before, during, and after their years at Walt Disney Studios. It's tough to narrow down their credits. My cousin Gregg and I encountered this dilemma when we made the 2009 Walt Disney Pictures feature documentary, "the boys: the sherman brothers' story." We ended up "narrowing it down" to approximately 160 (from over a thousand!) of their published, timeless, world-beloved songs.



The reason we moved to Beverly Hills? Dad and Dick had just been hired as the first -- and only -- staff songwriters at Disney Studios. They had been hired by Walt Disney, himself.



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