On youtube, someone wrote that the theme music for Rhoda is actually "The Yama Yama Man" from 1908 - only without the lyrics. The music was written by Karl L. Hoschna. The writer also pointed out that on the TV show, they only give credit to Billy Goldenberg, who was born in 1936...some 28 years after this song was written.

On youtube you can see Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers performing this song from 1939's "The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle". Pretty fascinating find!

On youtube, someone wrote that the theme music for Rhoda is actually "The Yama Yama Man" from 1908 - only without the lyrics. The music was written by Karl L. Hoschna. The writer also pointed out that on the TV show, they only give credit to Billy Goldenberg, who was born in 1936...some 28 years after this song was written.

On youtube you can see Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers performing this song from 1939's "The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle". Pretty fascinating find!

Small world here, I wrote that. :lol: Actually, someone else had pointed out somewhere before me that it sounded like the same tune. I looked into it and then checked out the credits for Rhoda and noticed they gave all the credit to Goldenburg. I believe someone owes the Hoschna family some royalties! :) But that's just my opinion. What do you think, Oliver?

It's funny you posted this tonight because I was just thinking about that song about an hour ago. Very weird; feels like the Twilight Zone. Here's the link so others can hear the song and offer their opinions:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YdSRmGGT50

YOU'RE the mystery man with all the knowledge! I spent most of the night on google trying to find some kind of available CD of the music (I heard a long recording of this about five years ago in the Times Square HoJo - read my other post!) and just found Mp3 downloads, which doesn't help me. Most of the renditions are New Orleans jazz productions, as well.

If you have any info on any CDs I can get (without the 'NO jazz' renditions) let me know! A big thank you to you for giving that info at youtube - it seems like a 30 year "cold case" has been solved!

Wow, one day after this topic comes up here, that Ginger Rogers link on Youtube vanishes. Did we tip someone off? That clip had been up a couple years. It seems very bizarre that it's gone just like that. Well, for those who didn't get a chance to hear the song, here's another link:

http://www.amazon.com/s?ie=UTF8&keywords=Yama%20Man&rh=i:digital-music,k:Yama%20Man&page=1

Here you can listen to a number of different versions. And here's another, one of the original recordings:

http://beemp3.com/download.php?file=3469915&song=The+Yama+Yama+Man+(1909)

This one is is from 1909. As it's 101 years old, the audio quality isn't great. But you get a good enough idea, at least.

YOU'RE the mystery man with all the knowledge!

Well, I've got to give credit where credit's due. I actually had not been aware of this song until I saw this link:

http://www.mobilemastee.com/desi_videos/video/PnZL-MFKcT8/Rhoda-TV-show-Season-1-Theme.html

That person "bearcub" (his name, not mine :lol: ), with his July 11 comment -- that's the first I had ever heard about this song and its Rhoda connection. I was intrigued when I read his comment and immediately went to Youtube and tracked down that Ginger Rogers clip, now gone (:. And, of course, Wikipedia to find out the history of the song. Even more intrigued after hearing it and reading about it, I had to check the end credits of Rhoda to see if they gave Hoschna credit for the music, and as we know, the answer is no.

I spent most of the night on google trying to find some kind of available CD of the music (I heard a long recording of this about five years ago in the Times Square HoJo - read my other post!) and just found Mp3 downloads, which doesn't help me. Most of the renditions are New Orleans jazz productions, as well.

If you have any info on any CDs I can get (without the 'NO jazz' renditions) let me know! A big thank you to you for giving that info at youtube - it seems like a 30 year "cold case" has been solved!

I'm not sure what you mean about a "no jazz" rendition. Are you saying you want to hear something that isn't a jazz version? If so, that's pretty much all I've been able to track down myself (other than the 1909 version above with the surface noise). I've looked at cduniverse.com and cdnow.com, and the only versions that were available to listen to, that I could find, were pretty much jazz. But check that Amazon link. I think all of these are sort of jazzy, but some less so than others (like the Studio Group and Danny Welton versions). Here it is again:

http://www.amazon.com/s?ie=UTF8&keywords=Yama%20Man&rh=i:digital-music,k:Yama%20Man&page=1

Click on "preview all songs" and you can hear snippets of each of these versions consecutively.

Wow, one day after this topic comes up here, that Ginger Rogers link on Youtube vanishes. Did we tip someone off? That clip had been up a couple years. It seems very bizarre that it's gone just like that.

How freakin' weird!!

Oh, btw, I tried that song link and it doesn't seem to work.

How freakin' weird!!

Oh, btw, I tried that song link and it doesn't seem to work.

Did you try this one to hear the song?

http://www.amazon.com/s?ie=UTF8&keywords=Yama%20Man&rh=i:digital-music,k:Yama%20Man&page=1

There's some slight resemblance at the beginning of the chorus, but that's it. Certainly not the same song.

Greg

There's some slight resemblance at the beginning of the chorus, but that's it. Certainly not the same song.

Greg

I'm not saying it's the same song, but it definitely sounds like the main portions of the theme were heavily influenced by Yama Yama Man, in the same way that Eric Carmen's only two big hits were influenced (ripped off of) works of Rachmaninoff.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJBlkL8_noA

Carmen mistakenly believed those pieces were too old for there to be a copyright and that he was safe using them, but he wound up being sued by the family and, ever since, the Rachmaninoff family has been receiving royalties from Eric Carmen recordings. Hoschna died at age 34 in 1911. I haven't seen any information that he had any descendants, so I don't know if a copyright for his work was maintained as late as the 1970s whereby Goldenburg could have been sued. But if the George Harrison could be sued (and he was) for his song My Sweet Lord by the composer of The Chiffon's He's So Fine, which isn't that similar, I personally could see how Goldenburg could have been sued for the Rhoda theme, if there had been anyone alive with standing to do that.

I agree with you LittleRickyII.