Greg O'Connor is a composer and songwriter who has composed scores for over 30 television series and has written numerous featured songs for TV, films and commercials. He is a Primetime
Emmy
The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...
winner and a four-time Emmy nominee. He has scored projects including variety, single camera comedy, multi camera comedy, animation, one hour drama, game show, sketch comedy, award show, stand up, reality, hidden camera, documentary, commercials and virtual reality.
Early life
O'Connor was born in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
. O'Connor is a graduate of
The University of Notre Dame
The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin founded the school in 1842. The main campu ...
’s Music School as well as the Scoring for Motion Pictures and Television Program at
USC
USC most often refers to:
* University of South Carolina, a public research university
** University of South Carolina System, the main university and its satellite campuses
**South Carolina Gamecocks, the school athletic program
* University of ...
. He began studying music at age six, taking piano lessons at the Bryn Mawr Conservatory of Music in Bryn Mawr PA, a suburb of Philadelphia. O'Connor also played alto saxophone for eight years. His education included performing in various ensembles, either as a pianist, saxophonist or vocalist, including concert band, jazz band, glee club and various top 40 bands throughout high school and college.
Career
Early in his career, O'Connor wrote the score for the Emmy Award-winning ''
Ben Stiller Show'' and ''
The Sunday Comics
''The Sunday Comics'' is a prime time showcase of comedy broadcast in the United States by Fox Broadcasting Company in 1991 and 1992.
''The Sunday Comics'' showcased not only standup comedy but also variety acts, and film shorts produced by co ...
'' on FOX. He also composed the underscore for all three seasons of the hidden camera series ''
The Jamie Kennedy Experiment
''The Jamie Kennedy Experiment'' is a half-hour-long American hidden camera/ practical joke reality television series that debuted in 2002 and was broadcast on The WB. The host and star of the show is Jamie Kennedy, a comedian who presented a r ...
'' and the ABC
Aaron Spelling
Aaron Spelling (April 22, 1923 June 23, 2006) was an American film and television producer and occasional actor. His productions included the TV series ''Family'' (1976–1980), '' Charlie's Angels'' (1976–1981), ''The Love Boat'' (1977–1986 ...
cop drama ''
10-8
''10-8: Officers on Duty'' is an American police drama television series created by Louis St. Clair and Jorge Zamacona, that aired on ABC from September 28, 2003 to January 25, 2004. The title is in reference to the ten-code for "officer in se ...
'', starring
Ernie Hudson
Earnest Lee Hudson (born December 17, 1945) is an American actor. His roles include Winston Zeddemore in the ''Ghostbusters'' film series, Sergeant Darryl Albrecht in ''The Crow'' (1994), and Warden Leo Glynn on HBO's '' Oz'' (1997–2003). Hu ...
and
Danny Nucci
Daniel Nucci (born September 15, 1968) is an American actor. He is best known for his supporting roles in blockbuster films, including his roles as Danny Rivetti in ''Crimson Tide'' (1995), Lieutenant Shepard in ''The Rock'' (1996), Deputy Monr ...
.
He has written two
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
Top 20 songs with collaborator
James Pankow
James Carter Pankow is an American trombone player, songwriter and brass instrument player, best known as a founding member of the rock band Chicago.
Early life, family and education
Born in St. Louis, Missouri of German and Irish descent, Pa ...
for the band
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
, as well as the song "
Here With Me" for the Chicago album ''
Stone of Sisyphus
''Chicago XXXII: Stone of Sisyphus'' is the twenty-first studio album, and thirty-second overall, by Chicago. Often referred to as their "lost" album, it was recorded in 1993 and originally intended to be released as ''Stone of Sisyphus'' on March ...
''. He produced five songs for the
Barry Manilow
Barry Manilow (born Barry Alan Pincus; June 17, 1943) is an American singer and songwriter with a career that spans seven decades. His hit recordings include "Could It Be Magic", " Somewhere Down the Road", " Mandy", "I Write the Songs", " Can ...
album ''
The Greatest Songs of the Eighties
''The Greatest Songs of the Eighties'' is Barry Manilow's 38th album, and follow-up to his 2007 album, ''The Greatest Songs of the Seventies''. This album, which features 12 songs from the decade of the 1980s, was released on November 24, 2008.
...
'', as well as Manilow's hit Christmas single "Christmas is Just Around the Corner."
O'Connor was the composer, songwriter and musical director for all 14 seasons of the hit sketch comedy show ''
Mad TV
''Mad TV'' (stylized as ''MADtv'') is an American sketch comedy television series originally inspired by '' Mad'' magazine. In its initial run, it aired on Fox from 1995 to 2009. After a one-off reunion show in 2015 to celebrate the twentie ...
'',
David Allen Grier’s comedy series
Chocolate News
''Chocolate News'' is an American satirical news show hosted and head written by David Alan Grier in 2008 with an emphasis on African American culture. The show was broadcast on Wednesday nights at 10:30 pm on Comedy Central as a lead-in to its ...
,
Jeff Foxworthy’s variety show
Blue Collar TV and
Bob Einstein
Stewart Robert Einstein (November 20, 1942 – January 2, 2019) was an American actor, comedy writer, and producer. He created and performed the satirical stuntman character Super Dave Osborne, and was also known for his roles as Marty Funkh ...
’s series Super Dave Spike-Tacular. Additionally, he was the musical director and composer for the ABC reality competition series
''The Next Best Thing''.
![Greg O'Connor- Composer](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6e/Greg_O%27Connor-_Composer.jpg)
O'Connor wrote and produced two songs for the film ''
The Greening of Whitney Brown
''The Greening of Whitney Brown'' is a 2011 adventure film directed by Peter Skillman Odiorne. It stars Aidan Quinn, Brooke Shields, Kris Kristofferson and Sammi Hanratty. The film received a limited theatrical release on November 11, 2011.
Plot ...
'', starring
Kris Kristofferson
Kristoffer Kristofferson (born June 22, 1936) is a retired American singer, songwriter and actor. Among his songwriting credits are "Me and Bobby McGee", " For the Good Times", "Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down", and "Help Me Make It Through the Nig ...
, Aiden Quinn and
Brooke Shields, one of which was performed by Shields. He wrote and produced three featured songs for
Lori Petty
Lori Petty (born October 14, 1963) is an American actress, director, and screenwriter. She is noted for her roles in the films ''Point Break'' (1991), ''A League of Their Own'' (1992), ''Free Willy '' (1993), and the title role in ''Tank Girl'' ...
’s directorial feature film debut, ''
The Poker House
''The Poker House'', subsequently retitled as ''Behind Closed Doors'', is a 2008 American independent drama film written and directed by Lori Petty, in her directorial debut. Based on Petty's early life during the 1970s, the film depicts a painfu ...
'', as well as two featured songs in the
Lego
Lego ( , ; stylized as LEGO) is a line of plastic construction toys that are manufactured by The Lego Group, a privately held company based in Billund, Denmark. The company's flagship product, Lego, consists of variously colored interlocking ...
movie ''
Clutch Powers''. O'Connor produced and wrote songs for the animated Lionsgate movie ''
Foodfight'' and produced two songs for
Curb Records
Curb Records (also known as Asylum-Curb and formerly known as MCG Curb) is an American record label started by Mike Curb, originally as Sidewalk Records in 1963. From 1969 to 1973, Curb merged with MGM Records where Curb served as President of ...
artist
Kimberley Locke
Kimberley Dawn Locke (born January 3, 1978) is an American singer-songwriter and television personality. She has recorded in the dance and pop genres, and has targeted the adult contemporary radio format. She was the cohost of the daytime talk ...
on the
Camille soundtrack for Oscar-winning producer
Al Ruddy.
O'Connor wrote all the opening songs for the ABC summer series
Greatest Hits
A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...
, produced by Grammy producer
Kenneth Ehrlich
Kenneth James "Ken" Ehrlich (born 1943) is an American television producer and director.[Pentatonix
Pentatonix (abbreviated PTX) is an American a cappella group from Arlington, Texas, currently consisting of vocalists Mitch Grassi, Scott Hoying, Kirstin Maldonado, Kevin Olusola, and Matt Sallee. Characterized by their pop-style arrangements ...](_blank)
. In the science fiction thriller genre, O'Connor also scored the virtual reality series Defrost, directed by
Randal Kleiser
John Randal Kleiser (born July 20, 1946) is an American film and television director, producer, screenwriter and actor, best known for directing the 1978 musical romantic-comedy film '' Grease''.
Biography
John Randal Kleiser was born in Lebanon ...
, which is one of the first long form dramatic series in this new groundbreaking genre. O'Connor co-wrote the theme song with actor
Will Sasso
Will may refer to:
Common meanings
* Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death
* Will (philosophy), or willpower
* Will (sociology)
* Will, volition (psychology)
* Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will
...
for his
Ten Minute Podcast starring Will,
Chris D’Elia
Christopher William D'Elia (born March 29, 1980) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and podcast host. He is known for playing Alex Miller on the NBC sitcom '' Whitney'', Danny Burton on the NBC sitcom ''Undateable'', Kenny on the ...
and
Bryan Callan.
Greg scored the animated feature fil
Bobbleheads The Moviefo
Universal Picturesand co-wrote 4 songs for the film. Greg wrote the feature
“Laura Dern” songfor the
2020 Film Independent Spirit Awards that instantly went viral, and was featured in every major publication and news outlet.
[
] He composed the main title theme for the newly release
Disney+serie
Prop Culture In 2020, Greg composed the company logo music fo
House of Paine Entertainmentfor Academy Awards produce
Rob Paineas well as the logo fo
Threshold Entertainmentfor produce
Lawrence Kasanoff Greg composed the theme song fo
The Caliendo Castfor actor comedia
Frank Caliendo
Awards
References
External links
Official Website*
LinkedIn Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oconnor, Greg
American male composers
21st-century American composers
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)
21st-century American male musicians