Jerry Goldsmith

Composer

The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Foundation Presents

02:26

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About

About this interview

In his two-hour interview, Jerry Goldsmith talks about his early years at CBS where he began as a typist in the music department and then began working on shows, adding library music (and some original work) to radio series of the day. He describes his transition to television with the "live" dramatic anthology series Climax! He talks about the schedule for this series, the kinds of music he wrote, and the phenomenon of working in "live" television. He also discusses working on the last two seasons of the prestigious CBS anthology series Playhouse 90. Additionally, he talks about his continued work in television (at Revue Studios, Lorimar Studios, and elsewhere), where he worked on other filmed series, television movies, and television miniseries. Jon Burlingame conducted the interview on May 8, 2002 in Beverly Hills, CA.

All views expressed by interviewees are theirs alone and not necessarily those of the Television Academy.

"In the music department at Universal Television in 1963 I was in one office, John Williams was in another, Quincy Jones, Dave Grusin, and Lalo Schifrin were all there. We'd try to outdo each other. It was a very creative time that doesn't exist now."

People Talking About ...

Jerry Goldsmith

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Chapter 1

On his early life and influences; on his early aspirations and career path; on his early experience with watching television

On getting into the business of composing music; on going to work for CBS Radio; on his job in the CBS Radio music library and on how he came to start writing scores for CBS radio shows

On transitioning into composing for CBS television with the series Climax!; on the craft of composing music for live television broadcasts and on the process of composing for television; on the experiences of having his score played during live broadcasts

Chapter 2

On where he would sit and conduct the orchestra during live Playhouse 90 broadcasts for director John Frankenheimer and on mishaps on live television; on the pressure of composing for live television in the '50s and what he learned in that time; on working with producer Norman Felton on Studio One

On Climax! being in color and being the first dramatic show to be taped; on composing for Playhouse 90 for producer Herbert Brodkin; on the various directors of Playhouse 90

On the process of composing for television; on the transition into composing for filmed television shows like Black Saddle; on the larger ensemble he used for The Twilight Zone episode "The Invaders"

Chapter 3

On composing for The Twilight Zone and working with Rod Serling on various shows; on leaving CBS and going to compose for Revue (later Universal Television) for series like Thriller; on composing for Dr. Kildare and other shows and his process of composing for television

On composing the theme and incidental music for The Man from U.N.C.L.E.; on being under contract for FOX and composing music for The Loner; on composing for Jericho and being nominated for Emmy Awards for composing for Thriller and The Man from U.N.C.L.E.

On composing for CBS Playhouse and the state of the television orchestras in the '60s; on composing for Room 222; on composing the themes for The Waltons, Barnaby Jones, Police Story, and Hawkins

Chapter 4

On composing for the made-for-television movie The Red Pony for which he won an Emmy Award; on composing for QB VII; on composing for Babe and Pursuit

On composing for Contract on Cherry Street; on composing for Hollywood Television Theater and Masada; on composing the theme for "Star Trek: The Motion Picture," which later became the theme for Star Trek: The Next Generation, and composing for other "Star Trek" features and shows including Star Trek: Voyager

On the difference between composing for features and composing for television; on career highlights; on advice to aspiring composers

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Jerry Goldsmith

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Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Babe

Black Saddle

CBS Playhouse

Climax!

Contract on Cherry Street

Dr. Kildare

Emmy Awards, The (Primetime and Daytime)

Hollywood Television Theatre

Jericho (1966-67)

Loner, The

Man From U.N.C.L.E., The

Masada

Playhouse 90

Pursuit

QB VII

Room 222

Star Trek: The Next Generation

Studio One

Thriller

Twilight Zone, The

Twilight Zone, The: "The Invaders"

Waltons, The

Advice

Anthology Drama

Bloopers

Emmy Awards

TV's Golden Age (1940s & '50s)

Television Industry

Composer

Music Director

Music Professionals

Classic Anthology Series

Cop/Detective/Mystery Series

Drama Series

Medical Dramas

Sci-Fi/Supernatural Series

TV Movies/Miniseries/Dramatic Specials

Western Series

Herbert Brodkin

John Frankenheimer

Norman Felton

Rod Serling

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