Marvin Hamlisch, who was responsible for writing the music to Barbra Streisand’s “The Way We Were,” used to utter an unusual prayer. 

In 1964, when he was 20 years of age, he would privately implore, “Please, God, let Barbra Streisand sing one of my songs.” 

A piano-playing prodigy since age 5, Hamlisch graduated from New York’s Queens College in 1967. The first job he landed was as a rehearsal pianist for “Funny Girl,” starring none other than Barbra Streisand. However, his early compositions were far from catching the attention of the soon-to-be diva.

Hamlisch went on to play piano at parties and composing scores for movies such as Sam Spiegel’s “The Swimmer.” In Liza Minnelli’s 1964 debut album, you can find “The Travelin’ Life,” a song written by Hamlisch during his teenage years (originally titled “Travelin’ Man”).

Years later, Hamlisch received a phone call from his friend Ray Stark about the opportunity to write a song for a film featuring Robert Redford and Streisand.

Enthusiastic about the possibility of his prayer being answered, Hamlisch resolved to capture the entire storyline of “The Way We Were” within a single song. 

“I wanted to convey all the sorrow, despondency and pain of their relationship, capturing its star-crossed nature,” Hamlisch later explained.

Released in 1973, “The Way We Were” is a romantic drama that unfolds the passionate relationship between Katie Morosky (Streisand), a politically active and outspoken woman, and Hubbell Gardiner (Redford), a more laid-back and politically neutral writer. Spanning several decades, from their college years in the 1930s through the post-World War II era, the film explores the challenges arising from their differing personalities, ideologies and the turbulent political climate of the times.

However, the realization that his melody would be crafted specifically for Streisand prompted Hamlisch to pause and reflect. 

“No matter what I was doing, I could hear Barbra’s voice in my head and recall how wonderful she sounds when she holds certain notes,” he said. “I wanted to let her soar! I was determined not to write something drippingly sentimental.”

Hamlisch eventually came up with what he considered to be a perfect composition.

“I’d been trying minor key melodies but thought they might have told you too much in advance that Streisand and Redford were never going to get together. So I wrote a major key melody that was sad but also had a great deal of hope in it,” he said.

Enter the lyric-writing couple Alan and Marilyn Bergman, who had previously earned an Academy Award for crafting the lyrics to “The Windmills of Your Mind” from the film “The Thomas Crown Affair.” As a perfect complement to Hamlisch’s composition, the duo skillfully fashioned words that captured the essence of the movie’s tale:

Memories
light the corners of my mind.

Misty water-colored memories
of the way we were.

Scattered pictures
of the smiles we left behind

Smiles we gave to one another
for the way we were.

Hamlisch and the Bergmans performed the song for Streisand at her home. While initially hesitant and declaring it too sentimental, Streisand eventually agreed to record the song, which went on to become the Academy Award-winning classic for Columbia Records.

Despite all of Hamlisch’s hard work, Streisand’s song was almost omitted from the original film version of the “The Way We Were.” The determined Hamlisch, however, convinced Columbia’s studio moguls to conduct two test screenings. 

During the initial screening without the song, the audience remained unmoved during the final scene where Streisand and Redford realize they have no future together. In the subsequent screening, Streisand’s tune was included. Hamlisch vividly recalled the impact, saying, “I heard a woman start to cry. And then another. And within minutes, there wasn’t a dry eye left. I knew I was right.”

It’s reasonable to assume that if he wasn’t religious already, Hamlisch likely became an advocate for prayer. 

“The Way We Were” earned these awards:

• Best Original Dramatic Score; Best Song

• Most Performed Feature Film Standards on TV

• Best Original Song - Motion Picture

• Song of the Year; Album of Best Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or a Television Special