Buddy Bregman, Arranger, Composer & Producer (1930-2017)

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He was one of Verve Records' first employees, collaborated with Ella Fitzgerald and Bing Crosby and orchestrated the film version of 'The Pajama Game.'

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Buddy Bregman, a conductor, arranger and composer who worked with the likes of Ella Fitzgerald, Ethel Merman and Bing Crosby and on films including The Pajama Game, has died. He was 86.

Bregman died on Sunday evening in Los Angeles after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease, his family announced. Survivors include his daughter Tracey Bregman, who plays Lauren Fenmore on the CBS soap opera The Young and the Restless.

His uncle was the legendary Broadway songwriter Jule Styne.

For a long stretch starting in the mid-1950s, Bregman was one of the busiest music men in Hollywood, with his work covering records, television and the movies.

For The Pajama Game (1957), an adaptation of the Broadway smash hit, Bregman did the arrangements for all the famous Bob Fosse numbers in the Stanley Donen-George Abbott classic, including "Steam Heat," "Once-a-Year-Day" and "Hernando's Hideaway."

The Chicago native also scored and orchestrated other films including Five Guns West (1955), The Wild Party (1956), The Delicate Delinquent (1957) and Born Reckless (1958).

Following a tenure as one of the first employees at Verve Records, Buddy became the musical director of NBC’s The Eddie Fisher Show in the late 1950s.

He also served as Merman’s personal arranger; produced TV specials/documentaries that featured Crosby, Judy Garland, Shirley Bassey and Mel Torme; worked as a producer on Jonathan Winters' CBS variety show; and directed several TV movies.

Bregman had become fascinated with music as a youngster and said he could orchestrate by the age of 11.

"At 14, I heard my first chart being played by a rehearsal band in Chicago led by the about-to-be famous [Stan Kenton trombonist] Bill Russo. Bad was the understatement of my work, but I did hear what was wrong — it was every single thing," he once said in a interview with Bruce Kimmel.

Bregman attended UCLA and did the orchestration and conducted for a few Lieber & Stoller songs, including "Bazoom I Need Your Lovin," recorded by The Cheers. It made the charts in 1954, and that prompted him to leave school.

At age 25, Bregman was hired by the legendary jazz impresario Norman Granz as the A&R head of a new label called Verve. There, he worked as an arranger for such artists as Crosby, Rosemary Clooney and Fred Astaire.

Bregman arranged two of the albums in Fitzgerald’s song-book project as well as several of her early Verve singles. He also produced the 1956 album Bing Sings Whilst Bregman Swings at Verve and did four albums with Sammy Davis Jr. (He also acted alongside Davis in the play The Desperate Hours.)

Bregman was the first American director hired for the BBC, where he produced and directed 1965's An Evening With Ethel Merman and ran its specials department. In 1966, he was appointed head of light entertainment for the weekday ITV company Redifussion London.

In addition to his daughter, survivors include his son Barry; his former wife, actress Suzanne Lloyd; his grandsons Austin, Landon, Bernie and Adam; his great-grandson Ace; and his brother Bobby and sister-in-law Ellisa.

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Buddy Bregman, a conductor and arranger, died Sunday, Jan. 8, 2017, in Los Angeles, according to multiple news sources. He was 86.

Bregman, a nephew of the songwriter Jule Styne, arranged music for a diverse array of singers including Judy Garland, Ella Fitzgerald, Bing Crosby, Ethel Merman, and Mel Torme.


Bregman, who was born July 9, 1930, in Chicago, studied at the University of California at Los Angeles. In 1955, he was hired to lead the orchestra for “The Gary Crosby Show” on CBS Radio. After turning 25, he joined Verge Records as the head of artists and repertoire.

His TV and film credits include "Five Guns West," "The Eddie Fisher Show," "Shower of Stars," and "General Electric Theater."

On Broadway, he arranged the music for “The Pajama Game” and “Jerry Lewis at the Palace.” He later did the orchestration for the movie version of “The Pajama Game.” He recalled his experiences in an interview with the writer Bruce Kimmel.

“In doing the orchestrations in the film ‘Pajama Game,’ I split the chores with Nelson Riddle,” Bregman said. “Not only did I do the orchestrations for the numbers, they kept me on to do the underscoring as well. So I wrote all of the background music based on the Adler and Ross Score – another real thrill as well."

Bregman was married to the actress Suzanne Lloyd from 1961 until 1988. They had a daughter, actress Tracey E. Bergman, who plays Lauren Fenmore on the CBS soap opera “The Young and the Restless.” She recently posted to Instagram a tribute to her father, who had Alzheimer’s disease:

“Three generations holding hands today. #BuddyBregman @1lxndon and me. My Father hasn't held my hand since I was a little girl but today he, Landon and I held hands as my Father starts his last adventure. All of his nurses are true rock stars, their compassion touches me so greatly. I knew my dad could hear us when we spoke to him and I pray that this part goes fast and easy. He is comfortable and sleeping peacefully. Fly high Dad, I've always called you Peter Pan. I know you can do this. Fly. #alzheimerssucks #thelonggoodbye #onwings #love #family @pyrcie”