Former post-office worker Robert Sherman and his younger brother Richard, an artificial-flower arranger whose prior claim to fame was gluing leaves on trees at Disneyland, created some of the best-known tunes for the best-loved Disney movies. As long as they concentrated on music, the brothers got along famously, creating a string of hits for movies including 101 Dalmatians, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Sword in the Stone, Aristocats, Bedknobs and Broomsticks, Jungle Book and Mary Poppins.
However despite this apparently harmonious partnership that brought joy to generations of children (and adults!), the Shermans hardly ever spoke to each other, and to this day remain estranged!
They refused to even acknowledge each other at the recent US premiere of the stage version of Mary Poppins. Robert lives in London, Richard in Los Angeles.
Now two of their sons (Robert's son Jeff and Richard's son Gregg) have produced a new documentary movie about this strange relationship - The Boys: The Sherman Brothers' Story - which has just been released in the USA. Keeping the spotlight strictly on their dads, the film has interviews and commentary from famous fans and former collaborators, including Julie Andrews, Alan Menkin, Angela Lansbury, Jim Dale, Cameron Mackintosh, Stephen Schwartz and even Ben Stiller (who, as a fan of the Shermans' work, is also executive producer of the film).
I hope the movie gets a showing over on this side of the pond, it sounds a fascinating story. But it is for their music that we all really love the Shermans. Ah, nostalgia...
Classics, all.
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