Howard Dietz

b. September 8, 1896, New York City, New York (USA) d. July 30, 1983, NYC, New York (USA) of Parkinson's Disease >> Please use Schwartz & Dietz when credited alongside Arthur Schwartz << Howard Dietz was an American publicist, lyricist, and librettist. He served as publicist/director of advertising for Samuel Goldwyn Productions and later MGM and is often credited with creating Leo the Lion, its lion mascot, and choosing their slogan Ars Gratia Artis. He wrote the lyrics for more than 500 songs mostly in collaboration with composer Arthur Schwartz. Dietz was the director of ASCAP from 1959 to 1961, and wrote an autobiography, "Dancing in the Dark" in 1974. Inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1972. In 1990 he received the ASCAP Award for Most Performed Feature Film Standard "That's Entertainment" from The Band Wagon.