Shangri-La (1946 song) Shangri-La (1946 song) "Shangri-La" is a popular song written by bandleader Matty Malneck and Robert Maxwell in 1946 with lyrics by Carl Sigman. The term comes from "Shangri-La" as the hidden valley of delight in James Hilton's 1933 novel "Lost Horizon". The term "Shangri-La," especially in the 1930s and 1940s, was slang for heaven or paradise, and the song is about the joy of being in love. Composer Maxwell's instrumental version (saxophone/organ lead with brass and rhythm), which featured his harp solo, which is heard in the introduction as well as in the coda section of the song, charted in
Lost Horizon (1973 film) has not improved since. It was selected for inclusion in the book "The Fifty Worst Films of All Time", co-written by critic Michael Medved, and is listed in Golden Raspberry Award founder John Wilson's book "The Official Razzie Movie Guide" as one of The 100 Most Enjoyably Bad Movies Ever Made. The film was also a box office bomb, losing an estimated $51 million. This musical version is much closer to the 1937 film than to the original James Hilton novel. It tells the story of a group of travellers whose aeroplane is hijacked while fleeing a bloody revolution. The