Richard M. Sherman Talks Writing MARY POPPINS Songs In New Academy Originals Episode

Composer Richard Sherman attends Mary Poppins 50th Anniversary Commemoration Screening at AFI Fest at TCL Chinese Theatre on November 9, 2013 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by John Sciulli/WireImage)

In 2013, Disney’s celebrated the 50th anniversary of one of its best loved films – MARY POPPINS. Starring Dick Van Dyke and Julie Andrews, in her Academy-Award winning role, the movie featured iconic toe-tapping songs including “A Spoonful of Sugar” and “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious,”

In the latest episode of The Academy’s on-going series, “The Story of Writing Songs for MARY POPPINS,” features Academy Award-winning composer Richard M. Sherman. In the episode, he recounts the experience of working with his brother Robert B. Sherman to create the beloved songs featured in the film MARY POPPINS.

He shares anecdotes of his interactions with Julie Andrews and Walt Disney, as well as the creative process behind writing the songs “A Spoonful of Sugar” and “Feed the Birds.”

MARY POPPINS, based upon the book by P.L. Travers, was the subject of the 2013 film SAVING MR BANKS starring Tom Hanks and Emma Thompson. Audiences witnessed the extraordinary untold story of how MARY POPPINS was bought to the big screen.

Actor Jason Schwartzman portrayed Sherman in the movie.

Watch The Academy conversation with cast and filmmakers of that film here.

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