Lionel Newman

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Lionel Newman was born in New Haven, Connecticut on January 4, 1916. He was one of ten children, the youngest of seven boys, born to Russian immigrant Jewish parents. While the family had little money, the children's inheritance was truly rich, especially as embodied in their mother, Luba, a strong woman who shepherded them through childhood, motivating them towards real achievement, and imprinting on all of them the forceful stamp of personality that could be felt by anyone who came into contact with any one of her "Newman Babies".

Lionel Newman migrated to Hollywood where, at the tender age of 16, he began conducting for impresario Earl Carroll. This was where he met his future wife, Beverly Carroll, a beautiful Earl Carroll Vanity’s showgirl, and niece of the impresario. Newman had formal training in New York, and after moving to Los Angeles he continued his studies with Joseph Achron and Mario Castelnuevo-Tedesco.

In the 1930s Newman earned his stripes conducting national tours and working as the piano accompanist for Mae West. She used to scold him for holding his hands too high in the pit saying, "I'm the show, Newman, not you".

At the age of 18, he obtained a job playing piano on the Holland America ocean liner, the " S.S.Rotterdam" with his "Newman's Society Orchestra". This trip had great significance for him, as he had always wanted to make another such trip to find his mother's home.

After serving an apprenticeship conducting and orchestrating live shows, Newman joined 20th Century Fox as a rehearsal pianist under the guidance of his brother, Alfred Newman. Lionel and his brothers hit Hollywood at just the right time. Their great energies and talents translated into power, not so much because they sought it, but because it was within them.

By 1959 Newman was promoted to Musical Director for Television at Twentieth Century Fox. This opened the doors to feature films. He was soon made vice president in charge of music for both television and features. This soon resulted in a promotion to senior vice president of all music for Twentieth Century Fox Films. He wrote several classic TV themes for Fox, including The Many Lives of Dobie Gillis, Adventures in Paradise, and Daniel Boone.

Lionel Newman's tenure with Twentieth Century Fox spanned 46 years with over 200 films to his credit, including How To Marry A Millionaire, North To Alaska, Road House, and Love Me Tender (Elvis Presley's first picture). He was musical director for all of Marilyn Monroe's films at Fox, in accordance with her request. These included Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, There's No Business Like Show Business, River of No Return, and Let's Make Love.

He received eleven Academy Award nominations, and won an Oscar for Hello Dolly! in 1969. He conducted the scores for Cleopatra, The Sand Pebbles, The Agony and the Ecstasy, The Long Hot Summer, The Young Lions, Alien, and The Omen. He was the musical supervisor for Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi, Monsignor, and The Fury. Although he did not consider himself a songwriter, he received a certificate of merit from Broadcast Music Incorporated (BMI) for over one million network performances of his 1948 hit, "Again", a pop standard that lived on long after its introduction in the film Road House.

During the last few years of his tenure at Fox, Newman conducted major symphony orchestras in the United States, Canada, the UK, and New Zealand.

Newman's wit and humor were infamous around the film capital. Frank Sinatra, in his biography, called Newman one of the funniest men in Hollywood.

Newman absolutely loved the film industry. In the world of film music, he worked very hard, and rose to join the Pantheon to become one of its giants. He was a perfectionist, tirelessly concerned with quality. He would always make "just one more take", if some little detail could be improved. He wanted the Twentieth Century Fox Orchestra to reach the level of a great symphony orchestra, and it did, especially when he conducted. He was a leader, instrumental in the careers of John Williams, Jerry Goldsmith, Dominic Frontiere, Pat Williams, and many more.

Lionel Newman was a child of the Golden Age of Hollywood - he was a living part of it, and actually helped create it.

Newman retired in 1985 and passed away on February 3, 1989.

[edit] External link

• Lionel Newman at the Internet Movie Database