Emil Newman

Who was Emil Newman?

Emil Newman was an American composer and conductor who worked on more than 200 films and TV shows. He was nominated for an Oscar for his musical direction on the classic Sun Valley Serenade.

A native of Connecticut, Newman entered films in 1940 as the musical director on 13 films. He was credited on 25 films in 1941 and 28 in 1942, one of which, Whispering Ghosts, contained his first contribution as a composer. He had 15 titles in 1943, including "Musical Direction" for the all-black musical Stormy Weather and the 20th Century Fox wartime film Chetniks! The Fighting Guerrillas, 19 in 1944, 17 in 1945 and 16 in 1946, including Hugo Friedhofer's Academy Award score for The Best Years of Our Lives, which he also conducted. Between 1950 and 1965, Newman was the composer on 23 films, most of which were lower-budget B movies. He also provided the music for numerous 1950s TV shows.

Newman died in Woodland Hills, a suburb of Los Angeles.