R.I.P. John Barry 1933 - 2011

For those of us who love film music, we lost a giant in that field yesterday, when news of the sudden death of British-born John Barry hit the airwaves. Barry will mostly be remembered for his dozens of scores for the James Bond films, but if you are a movie music junkie like me, you know his body of work is a vast one. Like many film composers of his generation, Barry started off arranging other composers work for the silver screen. His success with the Bond films led to his scoring of the popular 1967 film "Born Free" which won him two of his four Oscars, having been nominated for a total of six. When he wasn't scoring Bond films, he gave us such diverse scores as "The Lion In Winter", "Dances With Wolves", "Out of Africa", "Mary, Queen of Scotts", and "Chaplin." All of which brought him Oscar nods. Some of my favorite Barry scores were lesser known with the general movie-going public, but popular with film score aficionados. His 1976 score to the first remake of the classic "King Kong", is among his best. He captures the excitement of the jungle world Kong comes from, along with a lush full-on orchestra love theme that often made Barry scores memorable. His melancholy score to "Peggy Sue Got Married" is another favorite of mine and among his most listenable. Even not-so-good films like 1980's "Raise The Titanic", benefit from a mystical sounding romantic score by John Barry. Also that year he scored "Somewhere in Time" offering a popular love theme that became a hit on radio along with the films memorable rendition of Rachmaninoff's "Rhapsody On A Theme of Paganini." There were many other memorable scores, too numerous to mention, but emblematic of a prolific and one-of-a-kind composer whose sound will be sorely missed.

Ernie's Big Night

For those of you who missed it, here is Ernest Borgnine's Lifetime Achievement Award presentation from last night's SAG awards. I think I first discovered Ernest Borgnine when I was a kid while watching after school reruns of “McHale’s Navy” on TV. When I was a little older I saw him in “The Poseidon Adventure”, a movie I’ve watched on every New Year’s Eve for the past 20 years. Then when I got interested in acting and movie making, I saw his Oscar-winning performance in “Marty.” It’s hard to believe that Borgnine won his Best Actor Oscar over 55 years ago. But it’s a performance that has stood the test of time. Over the years he’s appeared in many classic films, “From Here To Eternity,” “Vera Cruz,” “Bad Day At Black Rock,” “The Flight of the Phoenix,” “The Dirty Dozen” and “The Wild Bunch.” One of my favorite’s is a hidden gem from 1956 called “The Catered Affair”, starring Borgnine and Bette Davis as a struggling New York couple trying to cope with the high cost of their daughter’s upcoming wedding. Written by Paddy Chayefsky who also penned the original “Marty,” the film is long out-of-print on VHS but can be seen occasionally on TCM. Another favorite of mine is "Emperor of the North" from 1973. See my blog posting on the DVD realease of that film by clicking here. It’s a real treat for those who love classic movies. And as far as class goes, last night, Borgnine, who has made a career out of playing villains and lower class characters, gave one of the most gracious and classy acceptance speeches heard on an award show in years. At 94 years young, this true American original seems to have found the secret for both longevity and a life well lived.

Ernest Borgnine Movies