| |
 |
|
|
| |
There are many great
features available to you once you register at TrekUnited,
including:
- Richer content, access to many features that are
disabled for guests like commenting on our news
articles.
- Create your own blog, or personal gallery.
- Access to a great community, where you can interect
with like minded individuals.
- Access to our chat room, and guest chats.
- Access to our network of sites, including Galactica.com.
- Access to our submit news feature, members can
try their hand at online journalism.
- It's simple, it's easy and it's free
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
 |
|
|
|
|
Star Trek composer Alexander Courage dead at 88 |
|
|
|
Written by Derek Kessler on
Wednesday, 28 May 2008
|
|
|
|
 Less than a week after having lost prolific Star Trek: The Original Series director Joseph Pevney, we’ve now received the news that the composer of the iconic Star Trek theme, Alexander Courage, has also passed away. Courage, who was 88 years old, had been in declining health for the past few years, and died on May 15th at an assisted living facility in Pacific Palisades, California.
Courage’s most famous piece was arguably the original Star Trek theme, in particular the eight note brass fanfare that was featured in both the original series and Star Trek: The Next Generation, in addition to all ten Star Trek feature films. The Star Trek theme is easily one of the most recognizable and enduring television themes in history.
Courage one an Emmy in 1988 as the principal arranger for the ABC special Julie Andrews: The Sound of Christmas. He was also nominated with Lionel Newman for his film score adaptations for The Pleasure Seekers (1963) and Doctor Dolittle (1967).
Alexander Courage was born on December 10, 1929 in Philadelphia, PA, and was raised in New Jersey where he learned to play the piano and French Horn. In 1941, Courage received a degree from the prestigious Eastman School of Music and enlisted in the Army Air Corps. While in the service, he became a bandleader for military bands stationed in bases in California and Arizona.
After WWII, Courage started working for CBS Radio, composing and conducting for shows like Hedda Hopper’s This is Hollywood, Screen Guild Theater, Detective, and Yours Truly. In 1948, up until 1960, Courage worked for MGM as an orchestrator and arranger, composing for the musicals including Show Boat, The Band Wagon, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, and Guys and Dolls. He also scored a few films at MGM, such as Shake, Rattle, and Rock and Hot Rod Rumble.
In the 1960’s, Courage moved to 20th Century-Fox, where he wrote music for episodes of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Land of the Giants, Lost in Space, and other classics. He also wrote the theme for Judd, for the Defense (1967-68), and his only other television theme: Star Trek. Courage wrote the scores for both pilot episodes of Star Trek (‘The Cage’ and ‘Where No Man Has Gone Before’) and four other episodes (‘The Man Trap,’ ‘The Naked Time,’ ‘The Enterprise Incident,’ and ‘Plato's Stepchildren’). Apart from Star Trek, Courage also scored more than 100 episodes of The Waltons through the 1970’s and 80’s, as well as four The Waltons TV movies.
Courage also composed for Apple’s Way, Eight is Enough, and a number of other series in the ‘70’s and ‘80’s, and received Emmy nominations as composer for Medical Center in 1973 and arranger for ABC’s Liberty Weekend in 1986.
Even though in his later years Courage was not listed as composer on many works, he did serve as the orchestrator for many of his old friends, including John Williams and Star Trek composer Jerry Goldsmith, who recommended Courage to Gene Roddenberry for the original Star Trek theme. Working for Williams, Courage wrote the orchestrations for Fiddler on the Roof, The Poseidon Adventure, Hook, and Jurassic Park, as well as several orchestral arrangements for the Boston Pops when John Williams served as the Pops’ conductor from 1980 to 1993. And for Jerry Goldsmith, Courage orchestrated Basic Instinct, The Mummy, Air Force One, Mulan, Star Trek: First Contact, and Star Trek: Insurrection.
Apart from being a composer, Courage was one of the founding members of the Composers and Lyricists Guild of America, which represented Hollywood composers and songwriters from the 50’s until the 70’s. He was also an award-winning photographer and had photos published in popular magazines like Life and Collier.
Courage’s third wide, Shirley Pumpelly, died in 2005. Alexander Courage is survived by his four stepchildren and six grandchildren. Plans for a memorial service will be announced shortly.
[via: The Film Music Society]
Listen: Star Trek theme, by Alexander Courage (2.5 MB MP3)
Discuss: TrekUnited Forum
|
|
|
|
|
"It's unethical to harm a patient. However, I can inflict as much pain as I like."
|
|
|
|
