Suesse, Dana

Dana Suesse Composer and pianist Kansas City, Missouri, December 3, 1910; New York City, October 16, 1987. One of the few women composers to score hits, Suesse is best remembered for “You Oughta Be in Pictures.” Trained as a classical pianist, she came to New York with her mother, who was an opera singer. Paul Whiteman invited her to write two “jazz concertos” for his orchestra to perform at Carnegie Hall; the reviewer in The New Yorker dubbed her “The Girl Gershwin.” Her first song hit was…