Les Waas, Mister Softee Jingle Creator, Dies At 94
PHILADELPHIA (CBSNewYork/AP) — The creator of the Mister Softee jingle heard in hundreds of ice cream trucks since 1960 has died. Les Waas was 94.
Goldsteins' Rosenberg's Raphael-Sacks funeral home says Les Waas died April 19 at Abington Hospice in Warminster, Pennsylvania.
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The advertising legend wrote and produced more than 970 jingles during a career that spanned more than five decades. But none was more well-known than the Mister Softee song, which he wrote as a radio ad in for the Philadelphia-based company in 1960.
The song is officially titled "Jingle and Chimes" and includes less recognized lyrics.
The tune later moved on to announce the arrival of ice cream trucks all over the world, WCBS 880's Mike Smeltz reported.
Former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg tired to ban the Mister Softee jingle as part of a city wide noise crackdown in 2004. But the ban failed, and Mister Softee plays on.
Waas is survived by his two children and three grandchildren.
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