That Old Black Magic is a 1942 popular song written by Harold Arlen (music) and Johnny Mercer (lyrics) for the film Star Spangled Rhythm, where it was first sung by Johnny Johnston and danced by Vera Zorina - the tune quickly became a standard. It was first recorded by Gordon Jenkins and his Orchestra on July 9, 1942, and Judy Garland recorded her version on July 26, 1942, released as a single in January 1943 after the movie’s release. The best known version is the January 1943 single by Glenn Miller and His Orchestra with Skip Nelson and The Modernaires, released by RCA Victor, a swing/jazz/pop performance that spent 14 weeks on the Billboard charts and hit number 1, Miller’s last number-one hit. The song was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1943 but lost to You’ll Never Know. Since then it has been covered by many artists including Margaret Whiting, Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., Louis Prima and Keely Smith, Marilyn Monroe in Bus Stop, Ella Fitzgerald, and others, cementing its place as a swinging, jazzy pop standard.
