Tom Lehrer is 27.7777…. today

The greatest satirical songwriter ever to grace the planet prefers to count his age in Centigrade. In Farenheit, he’s 82.

On April 9, 1928, little Thomas Lehrer was born in Manhattan, and…

…began studying classical piano music at the age of seven, but was more interested in the popular music of the age. Eventually, his mother also sent him to a popular-music piano teacher. At this early age, he began writing his own show tunes, which eventually would help him in his future adventures as a satirical composer and writer in his years at lecturing at Harvard University and later at other universities.

Wiki

I was privileged to see and hear the Master in a living room concert in the early part of 1968. I was nine, and it was a fundraiser for Eugene McCarthy. He sang and played all of his best-known material, and delivered “Whatever Became of You, Hubert?” with an air of great mockery. As a special part of the fundraising, a bottle of French wine labeled “Chateau Maccarthy” and autographed by Lehrer was auctioned off; my father bought it. I wonder where that bottle is now.

more »