In 1934, Coots wrote the melody with his then chief collaborator, lyricist Haven Gillespie, for the biggest hit of either man's career, "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town.

[6] In 1934, when Gillespie brought him the lyrics to "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town", Coots came up with the outline of the melody in just ten minutes.

[7] Coots offered the song to Eddie Cantor who used it on his radio show that November and it became an instant hit.

In 1922, Dowling commissioned Coots to write the songs for Sally, Irene and Mary, a show which ran for two years on Broadway.

"Love Letters in the Sand" In 1934, he wrote the songs "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town" (over 4 million copies of sheet music sold) and "For All We Know" In 1940, he wrote "The Rangers' Victory Song";[i] OCLC 812404397 He died in 1985 in a New York City hospital, after a lengthy illness[9] Notes Original copyrights Copyright renewals Inline citations