Jerry Goldsmith

For over four decades, Jerry Goldsmith ranked among the film and television industry's most highly-regarded and prolific composers; at the peak of his activity during the 1960s, he was estimated to have scored an average of about six films annually. Born in Los Angeles on February 10, 1929, Goldsmith studied music at the University of South Carolina, and after accepting a job as an office clerk at CBS television later graduated to the network's music department in 1950. There he composed themes for series including Gunsmoke, Perry Mason, Have Gun Will Travel, The Twilight Zone and The Man from U.N.C.L.E. before turning to film in 1957, debuting with the score to Black Patch. Under the tutelage of the great Alfred Newman, Goldsmith rose to prominence with 1962's Lonely Are the Brave, and subsequently emerged as one of Hollywood's most prolific composers. Among his credits were such diverse offerings as Patton, Planet of the Apes, Seconds, Chinatown, Poltergeist and Rambo: First Blood Part II; while nominated for over a dozen Academy Awards, Goldsmith won only one, for 1976's The Omen. Additionally, he regularly toured concert halls, performing his music and conducting the likes of the San Diego Symphony and Britain's Royal Philharmonic. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide