UC grad Al Hague composes 'How the Grinch Stole Christmas'
How Albert Hague won over Dr. Seuss
UC alumnus Albert Hague, CCM ’42, composed "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch" as an audition piece to win the job scoring the 1966 TV movie “How the Grinch Stole Christmas.” His agent cautioned him against using a quirky audition concept he had, but the composer said he knew best, and he was right. He nabbed the job within minutes.
In the '60s, Hague was enormously famous on Broadway, having won a Tony Award in 1959 for his score for the musical "Redhead," directed by Bob Fosse. Hollywood, however, was a new environment for him. "I had a young agent," he recalled, "who called to ask if I would like to work with Dr. Seuss. I saw an audition coming on, so I said, 'Absolutely. I'd love to.'"
But when Hague insisted that Theodor Seuss Geisel come to his house for the audition, the agent pointed out the request was inappropriate in the TV world. "You don't understand," she told her client. "This guy is from Hollywood. You have to go to him because he's more important." "No, no," Hague replied. "Don't make him come to my house because I'm more important; make him come here because I have the better piano. And that will be understood." She disagreed that anything would be so easily understood, but Hague won out when he countered, "I guarantee you this: If you make him come to my house, I'll get the job."
The famed children's author showed up with four other people — major agents from the East Coast," Hague remembers. "I didn't know it then, but this meeting was for the company's largest account at the time. Hague played only one piece, the signature song he had composed for the audition. "Afterward, Seuss looked up and said, 'Anyone who slides an octave on the word Grinch gets the job.' The whole thing took three minutes." (Note: If you read the lyrics below, the octave-long name occurs at the end of each stanza.)
I had a young agent ask if I would like to work with Dr. Seuss... I said, 'Absolutely. I'd love to.'
Albert Hague
When Jim Carrey made the story into a full-length feature film in 2000, Hague's song and much of his score accompanied the movie, and he was listed in the credits. Hague was also well known for playing the role of Mr. Shorofsky, the music teacher, in the TV series "Fame" from 1982-87. In addition, his musical "Plain and Fancy," a story set among the Amish of Pennsylvania, is performed all year long, and has been for decades, in Nappanee, Ind. In November 2001, Hague died at age 81.
"You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch"
You're a mean one, Mr. Grinch.
You really are a heel.
You're as cuddly as a cactus,
You're as charming as an eel.
Mr. Grinch,
You're a bad banana
With a greasy black peel.
You're a monster, Mr. Grinch.
Your heart's an empty hole.
Your brain is full of spiders,
You've got garlic in your soul.
Mr. Grinch,
I wouldn't touch you, with a
thirty-nine-and-a-half foot pole.
You're a vile one, Mr. Grinch.
You have termites in your smile.
You have all the tender sweetness
Of a seasick crocodile.
Mr. Grinch,
Given the choice between the two of you
I'd take the seasick crocodile.
You're a foul one, Mr. Grinch.
You're a nasty, wasty skunk.
Your heart is full of unwashed socks.
Your soul is full of gunk.
Mr. Grinch,
The three words that best describe you are,
and I quote: "Stink. Stank. Stunk."
You're a rotter, Mr. Grinch.
You're the king of sinful sots.
Your heart's a dead tomato splot
With moldy purple spots.
Mr. Grinch,
Your soul is an appalling dump heap
overflowing with the most disgraceful
assortment of deplorable rubbish
imaginable, mangled up in tangled up knots.
You nauseate me,
Mr. Grinch, With a nauseous super-naus.
You're a crooked jerky jockey
And you drive a crooked horse.
Mr. Grinch,
You're a three decker sauerkraut
and toadstool sandwich
with arsenic sauce.
Lyrics by Dr. Seuss, 1957. Article content (originally written by Deborah Rieselman) republished with permission of UC Magazine.
Become a Bearcat
Apply online or get more information about undergraduate enrollment by calling (513) 556-1100. Learn more about UC's many undergraduate and graduate programs.
Related Stories
CCM welcomes new viola faculty member Brian Hong
May 1, 2025
UC College-Conservatory of Music Dean Pete Jutras has announced the appointment of Brian Hong as CCM's new Assistant Professor of Viola. His faculty appointment officially begins on Aug. 15, 2025. Hong has established a notable career as a critically acclaimed performer, inspiring pedagogue and successful music administrator. As the violist of the GRAMMY-nominated Aizuri Quartet from 2023-2025, he premiered major new works on nationally renowned chamber music series and conducted residencies at universities across the United States.
Album by CCM faculty featured in the New York Times
April 25, 2025
Four CCM faculty members were recently highlighted in a New York Times roundup of notable new classical music albums. Entitled "5 Classical Music Albums You Can Listen to Right Now," the article spotlights the new album of Beethoven's string quartets performed by the Ariel Quartet, which has served as CCM's string quartet-in-residence since 2012. The ensemble is comprised of four CCM faculty members: Alexandra “Sasha” Kazovsky, violin; Amit Even-Tov, cello; Gershon Gerchikov, violin; and Jan Grüning, viola.
CCM Chamber Choir celebrates composer Eriks Ešenvalds in April...
Event: April 26, 2025 7:30 PM
UC College-Conservatory of Music welcomes composer Ēriks Ešenvalds for a concert celebrating his works and the music of Latvia at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 26. Featuring the CCM Chamber Choir, the performance marks the finale of CCM's collegiate concert series for 2024-25.