Moon River Moon River "Moon River" is a song composed by Henry Mancini with lyrics by Johnny Mercer. It was originally performed by Audrey Hepburn in the 1961 movie "Breakfast at Tiffany's", winning an Academy Award for Best Original Song. The song also won the 1962 Grammy Awards for Record of the Year and Song of the Year. The song has been covered by many other artists. It became the theme song for Andy Williams, who first recorded it in 1962 (and performed it at the Academy Awards ceremony that year). He sang the first eight bars of the song at the
Audrey Hepburn nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance. The same year, Hepburn also starred in William Wyler's controversial drama "The Children's Hour" (1961), in which she and Shirley MacLaine played teachers whose lives become troubled after a student accuses them of being lesbians. Due to the social mores of the time, the film and Hepburn's performance went largely unmentioned, both critically and commercially. Bosley Crowther of "The New York Times" opined that the film "is not too well acted" with the exception of Hepburn who "gives the impression of being sensitive and pure" of its "muted theme",