kollmar tried his hand at producing a broadway musical in 1943 when he helped launch "early to bed". its songs were composed by jazz pianist/popular song composer fats waller. kollmar's role in introducing waller's music to new york theatergoers was recalled in a 2016 essay about waller by john mcwhorter, an american academic and linguist who is associate professor of english and comparative literature at columbia university, where he teaches linguistics, american studies, philosophy, and music history. (he is the author of a number of books on language and on race relations.)even as late as 1943, the idea of a black composer writing the score for a standard-issue white show was unheard of. when broadway performer and producer richard kollmar began planning "early to bed", his original idea was for waller to perform in it as a comic character, not to write the music. waller was, after all, as much a comedian as a musician. comedy rarely dates well, but almost 80 years later, his comments and timing during “your feet's too big” are as funny as anything on comedy central, and he nearly walks away with the movie "stormy weather" with just one musical scene and a bit of mugging later on, despite the competition of bill “bojangles” robinson, lena horne, and the nicholas brothers.