Hear David Raksin Conduct His Brilliant Score to Vincente Minelli’s Classic Drama about a Ruthless Hollywood Producer and the People He Used, The Bad and the Beautiful (1952)

Re-posted by N.S.

David Raksin is most famous for his haunting score to Otto Preminger’s mystery, Laura (1944), and for the theme music for the popular medical drama, Ben Casey (1962-1967)—see about 3:50 in this suite.

The Bad and the Beautiful was released in 1952, the year of more Top 100 masterpieces than any other: Singin’ in the Rain, High Noon, The Quiet Man, The Lavender Hill Mob, Forbidden Games and The Member of the Wedding.

The Bad and the Beautiful had a brilliant ensemble cast: Kirk Douglas, Lana Turner, Gloria Grahame, Barry Sullivan, Gilbert Roland, Walter Pidgeon and Dick Powell.

Movie Themes Symphonies & Suites

“David Raksin conducting the New Philharmonic Orchestra. Recorded in 1976.”

Noe Berengena

1 year ago (edited)

“MGM film directed by Vincente Minnelli released in 1952 with Lana Turner and Kirk Douglas. This film received five Oscars.

“David Raksin born in 1912 began his career as a clarinetist in ballroom orchestras and composed for Broadway shows. It was Alfred Newman who encouraged him to come to Hollywood in the 1930s. This was an opportunity to work with Charles Chaplin for the orchestration of Modern Times.

“His first composition was for Three Smart Girls in 1936 but it was in 1944 that he had real success with Laura by Otto Preminger and Forever Amber in 1947. He composed for many films until 1982, his last movie The Day after by Nicolas Meyer. Raksin died in 2004, aged 92. At the time of his death, it was announced that Raksin had completed his autobiography, eventually published under the title, The Bad and the Beautiful: My Life in a Golden Age of Film Music.”