A composer, Wyle wrote more than 400 songs. After moving to Los Angeles in 1946, he hooked into the entertainment industry, where he was the musical director for the Alan Young Radio Show. He also worked extensively on The Dinah Shore Show, The Jerry Lewis Show and The Andy Williams Show.
But he’s best known for two songs: the Christmas classic The Most Wonderful Time of the Year, and the theme for the 1960s (and still running in syndication) series Gilligan’s Island. Speaking of that theme, Wyle once said that “America doesn’t want great music themes, just something it can remember.” He died May 2 from leukemia at 87.