Having started his songwriting career with Earl Carroll's Vanities on Broadway in the late 1920s, he joined the ASCAP in 1930.

[citation needed] In 1934, he was signed by MGM and relocated to Hollywood, eventually writing full scores for feature films.

During the 1940s, he worked for a number of studios, including Paramount, Warner Brothers, Disney, and Republic.

[citation needed] During these tenures, he collaborated with many of the great composers of the era, including Hoagy Carmichael, Victor Young, Max Steiner, and Dimitri Tiomkin.

[2] With Leigh Harline, he contributed most of the melodic songs that distinguished the Pinocchio soundtrack, including "When You Wish Upon a Star".