Abel Meeropol

American songwriter and writer who worked under the pseudonym Lewis Allan. Born 10th February 1903; died 30th October 1986, Longmeadow, Mass. Adopted in 1957 the sons of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg, who were executed for passing atomic secrets to Soviet Union. Wrote the anti-lynching poem "Strange Fruit" which was later set to music for and made famous by Billie Holiday, then, in 1980, by UB40. Two other famous songs are "The House That I Live In" (performed by Frank Sinatra) and "Apples, Peaches and Cherries". The latter song became famous in France in its translation by Sacha Distel under the title "Scoubidou".