Charles Gross (born 13 May 1934)
is an American film and TV
composer
A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music.
Etymology and Defi ...
, living in New York City.
Gross, born in
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
, Massachusetts,
was educated at
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
(BA), the
New England Conservatory
The New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) is a private music school in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the oldest independent music conservatory in the United States and among the most prestigious in the world. The conservatory is located on Hu ...
and
Mills College
Mills College at Northeastern University is a private college in Oakland, California and part of Northeastern University's global university system. Mills College was founded as the Young Ladies Seminary in 1852 in Benicia, California; it was ...
(teaching fellowship), and a student of
Darius Milhaud
Darius Milhaud (; 4 September 1892 – 22 June 1974) was a French composer, conductor, and teacher. He was a member of Les Six—also known as ''The Group of Six''—and one of the most prolific composers of the 20th century. His compositions ...
. He arranged for the
West Point Band
The West Point Band (also known as the U.S. Military Academy Band or USMA Band) is the U.S. Army's oldest active band and the oldest unit at the United States Military Academy, traces its roots to the American Revolutionary War. At that time, fife ...
for three years, and served in the
US Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
. Later, he became a writer for industrial films and cartoons.
He has written original music for the 1976 Broadway production of ''
The Eccentricities of a Nightingale
''Summer and Smoke'' is a two-part, thirteen-scene play by Tennessee Williams, completed in 1948. He began working on the play in 1945 as ''Chart of Anatomy'', derived from his short stories "Oriflamme" and the then-work-in-progress "Yellow Bir ...
''.
His film and television scores included ''
Valdez Is Coming
''Valdez Is Coming'' is a 1971 American Western film directed by Edwin Sherin and starring Burt Lancaster, Susan Clark, Richard Jordan and Jon Cypher. The film is based on the 1970 Elmore Leonard novel of the same name.
Plot
Aging town consta ...
'' (1971), ''
The Tenth Level
''The Tenth Level'' is a 1976 American made-for-television drama film movie starring William Shatner. Inspired by the Stanley Milgram obedience research, this TV movie chronicles a psychology professor's study to determine why people, such as t ...
'' (1976), ''
Blue Sunshine'' (1978),
''
The Dain Curse
''The Dain Curse'' is a novel by Dashiell Hammett, published in 1929. Before its publication in book form, it was serialized in ''Black Mask (magazine), Black Mask'' magazine in 1928 and 1929.
Serial publication
''The Dain Curse'' was original ...
'' (1978), ''
Heartland
Heartland or Heartlands may refer to:
Businesses and organisations
* Heartland Bank, a New Zealand-based financial institution
* Heartland Inn, a chain of hotels based in Iowa, United States
* Heartland Alliance, an anti-poverty organization i ...
'' (1979), ''
My Body, My Child
''My Body, My Child'' is a 1982 American made-for-television drama film directed by Marvin J. Chomsky and starring Vanessa Redgrave. It premiered on ABC on 12 April 1982. It includes early performances by future ''Sex and the City'' co-stars, Sa ...
'' (1982), ''
Terrible Joe Moran
''Terrible Joe Moran'' is a 1984 American made-for-television drama film directed by Joseph Sargent and starring James Cagney in his final role, Art Carney, and Ellen Barkin. The film, about an aging ex-boxer (Cagney) who needs to use a wheelcha ...
'' (1984), ''
Country
A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...
'' (1984), ''
The Burning Bed
''The Burning Bed'' is both a 1980 non-fiction book by Faith McNulty about battered housewife Francine Hughes, and a 1984 TV-movie adaptation written by Rose Leiman Goldemberg. The plot follows Hughes' trial for the murder of her husband, James B ...
'' (1984), ''
The Night They Saved Christmas
''The Night They Saved Christmas'' is a 1984 American made-for-television fantasy drama film directed by Jackie Cooper and executive produced by Jack Haley Jr. and Robert Halmi Jr. The film, about an oil company dynamiting in the North Pole in ...
'' (1984), ''
Arthur the King
''Arthur the King'' is an upcoming American adventure film directed by Simon Cellan Jones, written by Michael Brandt, and starring Mark Wahlberg, Simu Liu, and Juliet Rylance. It is based on the 2016 non-fiction book ''Arthur - The Dog Who Cross ...
'' (1985), ''
Sweet Dreams'' (1985), ''
Between Two Women'' (1986), ''
Punchline
A punch line (a. k. a. punch-line or punchline) concludes a joke; it is intended to make people laugh. It is the third and final part of the typical joke structure. It follows the introductory framing of the joke and the narrative which sets up ...
'' (1988), ''
Turner & Hooch
''Turner & Hooch'' is a 1989 American buddy cop comedy film starring Tom Hanks and Beasley the Dog as the eponymous characters respectively. The film also co-stars Mare Winningham, Craig T. Nelson and Reginald VelJohnson. It was directed by Rog ...
'' (1989), ''
Air America'' (1990), ''
Another You
''Another You'' is a 1991 American comedy film directed by Maurice Phillips and produced and written by Ziggy Steinberg. The film stars Richard Pryor, Gene Wilder, Mercedes Ruehl, Vanessa Williams and Kevin Pollak. The film was released in the U ...
'' (1991), ''
A Family Thing
''A Family Thing'' is a 1996 American drama film starring Robert Duvall, James Earl Jones and Irma P. Hall. It was rewritten by Billy Bob Thornton and Tom Epperson, the original script, "Latent Blood" was written by L Guy Burton, and directed b ...
'' (1996), and ''
Fakin' Da Funk'' (1997).
External links
*
References
1934 births
Living people
American film score composers
American television composers
Harvard University alumni
Mills College alumni
Musicians from New York City
New England Conservatory alumni
Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences
{{US-composer-20thC-stub