The Reformer and the Redhead

David Raksin was an American composer who was renowned for his work in film and television. With over 100 film scores and 300 television scores to... his credit, he became known as the "Grandfather of Film Music." David Raksin was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1912. His father was an orchestra conductor. Raksin played professionally in dance bands while attending Central High School of Philadelphia. He went on to study composition with Harl McDonald at the University of Pennsylvania and later with Isadore Freed in New York and Arnold Schoenberg in Los Angeles. In New York Raksin worked as an arranger for Harms/Chappell. One of his earliest film assignments was as assistant to Charlie Chaplin in the composition of the score to Modern Times . He is perhaps best remembered for the haunting theme to the 1944 movie Laura, which became the 1945 song "Laura". Johnny Mercer put lyrics to this theme, and during Raksin's lifetime this was said to be the second most-recorded song in history following Stardust by Hoagy Carmichael and Mitchell Parish. He also wrote the theme song for Ben Casey.
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