Neil Sedaka (March 13, 1939 — February 27, 2026) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Beginning his music career in 1957, he sold millions of records worldwide and wrote or co-wrote over 500 songs for himself and other artists, collaborating mostly with lyricists Howard Greenfield and Phil Cody. After a short-lived tenure as a founding member of the doo-wop group the Tokens, Sedaka achieved a string of hit singles over the late 1950s and early 1960s, including "Oh! Carol" (1959), "Calendar Girl" (1960), "Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen" (1961), and "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" (1962). His popularity declined by the mid-1960s, but revived in the mid-1970s, solidified by the 1975 US Billboard Hot 100 number ones "Laughter in the Rain" and "Bad Blood". Sedaka maintained a successful career as a songwriter, penning hits for other artists, including "Stupid Cupid" (Connie Francis), "(Is This the Way to) Amarillo" (Tony Christie), and "Love Will Keep Us Together" (Captain & Tennille). As a performer, he had ten No. 1 hits and four as a songwriter. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1983 and continued to perform, mounting mini-concerts on social media during the COVID-19 pandemic. Sedaka was hospitalized in Los Angeles after experiencing an undisclosed medical emergency and later died on February 27, 2026, aged 86.

Filmography

• 2010Neil Sedaka: That's When the Music Takes Me
• 2006Neil Sedaka: The Show Goes On
• The Garden Party
• The Heaven and Earth Show
• The King of Queens — Neil Sedaka
• 1994Food Rocks — Neil Moussaka (uncredited), Songs
• Later... with Jools Holland
• 1983Neil Sedaka Says: All You Need Is the Music
• Breaking Up Is Hard to Do — Theme Song Performance
• 1976Bob Hope's Comedy Christmas Special
• The Sonny and Cher Show
• 1975In Concert: Neil Sedaka
• Look - Mike Yarwood!
• 1967Playgirl Killer — Bob
• 1966Sting of Death — Songs

Appearances as themselves (34)

• 2023ABBA Silver, ABBA Gold — Himself - singer-songwriter
• 2022Kylie Minogue V The Bee Gees — Self (archive footage)
• This Is Pop — Self
• 2020ABBA: In Their Own Words — Self
• 2019ABBA Forever: A Celebration — Self
• 2015Neil Sedaka - Legends in Concert — Self
• Good Morning Britain — Self
• 2014Neil Sedaka: King of Song — Self
• The Alan Titchmarsh Show — Self
• Legends — Self
• The Tony Danza Show — Self
• American Idol — Self - Guest Judge
• The View — Self
• The Music Biz — Self
• Pebble Mill — Self
• Surprise, Surprise — Self - Performer
• Na sowas! — Self
• 1981Neil Sedaka: Live in Concert at the Jubilee Hall — Himself
• Donny & Marie — Self
• Saturday Night Live — Self - Musical Guest
• 1974The Midnight Special Legendary Performances 1974 — Self
• Tony Orlando and Dawn — Self
• Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest — Self
• Ein Kessel Buntes — Self
• Musikladen — Self
• The Carol Burnett Show — Self
• 1964Instant Love — Himself
• Shindig! — Self - Singer / Pianist
• The Merv Griffin Show — Self
• The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson — Self
• The Mike Douglas Show — Self - Guest Co-Host
• 1960Festival in Rhythm — Himself
• The Dick Clark Show — Self
• The Ed Sullivan Show — Self