R. Alex Anderson

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American songwriter from Hawaii.

Born June 6, 1894 in Honolulu, Hawaii

Died May 30, 1995 (aged 100) in Honolulu, Hawaii

He was married to singer [a9622012].

He composed over 200 songs, including "Lovely Hula Hands," the million-selling (as recorded by Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters) Christmas song "Mele Kalikimaka," "Blue Lei," "The Cockeyed Mayor of Kaunakakai," "On a Coconut Island," and many other favorites and standards of Hawaiian music. He was a fighter pilot in WWII, was shot down, wounded in enemy territory, and as a prisoner of war by the Germans, Anderson conceived of a daring and ultimately successful escape. This was later turned into a movie and a book [i]From a Joyful Heart: The Life and Music of R. Alexander Anderson[/i].

Mele Kalikimaka charted in 2006 by Jake Owen, landing at the #40 spot on the U.S. country charts.