Heinz Roemheld (May 1, 1901 – February 11, 1985) was an American

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 def ...

Early life and career

Born Heinz Eric Roemheld in

Milwaukee, Wisconsin Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

, he was one of four children of German immigrant Heinrich Roemheld and his wife Fanny Rauterberg Roemheld. Heinrich was a

pharmacist A pharmacist, also known as a chemist in English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English, is a healthcare professional who is knowledgeable about preparation, mechanism of action, clinical usage and legislation of medications in ...

, but all the members of the family were musical. His brother Edgar Roemheld (1898-1964) became a conductor. His sister Irmgard Roemheld (1904-1995) became a well-known Milwaukee music teacher and radio broadcaster. Roemheld was a child prodigy who began playing the piano at four. He graduated from the Milwaukee College of Music at 19 and performed in theaters to earn money to study

piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

. In 1920, he went to

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

, where he studied with Hugo Kaun,

Ferruccio Busoni Ferruccio Busoni (1 April 1866 – 27 July 1924) was an Italian composer, pianist, conductor, editor, writer, and teacher. His international career and reputation led him to work closely with many of the leading musicians, artists and literary ...

, and

Egon Petri Egon Petri (23 March 188127 May 1962) was a Dutch-American pianist. Life and career Petri's family was Dutch. He was born a Dutch citizen in Hanover, Germany, and grew up in Dresden, where he attended the Kreuzschule. His father, a professi ...

. While there, he appeared in concert with the Berlin Philharmonic. "Milwaukee-born Heinz Roemheld followed a circuitous route to a career as a film composer. At age four, he was identified as a piano prodigy; he later studied with Ferruccio Busoni and Egon Petri in Berlin and performed as a guest soloist with the Berlin Philharmonic at 23." When he returned to America, Roemheld became involved in music for silent movies, both as a pianist and conductor. In 1925, he was sent back to Berlin as head of

Universal Pictures Universal City Studios LLC, doing business as Universal Pictures (also known as Universal Studios or simply Universal), is an American filmmaking, film production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered at the 10 Universal Ci ...

theaters there but had to leave in 1929 due to the rise of

Nazism Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During Hitler's rise to power, it was fre ...

. Back in America, Roemheld moved to Los Angeles and became a prominent cinema composer. He scored some scenes in '' Gone with the Wind'', including the burning of Atlanta, although he was not credited on-screen. In 1942, he won the Academy Award for Best Original Music Score for '' Yankee Doodle Dandy''. Among the more than 400 other films for which he composed music were '' Gentleman Jim'', '' The Lady From Shanghai'', ''

The Invisible Man ''The Invisible Man'' is an 1897 science fiction novel by British writer H. G. Wells. Originally serialised in '' Pearson's Weekly'' in 1897, it was published as a novel the same year. The Invisible Man to whom the title refers is Griffin, a s ...

'', and '' Shine On, Harvest Moon''. After World War II, Roemheld returned to Germany to become Chief of the Film, Theatre, and Music Section of the Information Central Division of The American Armies in Europe. He continued writing for several major film studios until the late 1950s and, after briefly working in

television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

, he retired in 1964 to concentrate on classical composition. He is best known for the song "Ruby" from the movie '' Ruby Gentry'' (1952), which has become a standard.

Personal life

He married a former Miss Milwaukee, Emeline Defnet (1901-1980), from whom he was later divorced. They had two daughters, Mary Lou Roemheld, who was married for years to game show host Jack Narz, and Ann Roemheld, who married game show host Bill Cullen.

Death

Roemheld died on February 11, 1985, at a convalescent home in Huntington Beach after contracting pneumonia three weeks earlier.

Partial filmography

*'' The White Hell of Pitz Palu'' (1929) *'' All Quiet on the Western Front'' (1930) *'' The Czar of Broadway'' (1930) *'' See America Thirst'' (1930) *'' The Hunchback of Notre Dame'' (1931 reissue) *'' Murders in the Rue Morgue'' (1932) (stock music, uncredited) *'' Golden Harvest'' (1933) *''

'' (1933) (uncredited) *'' Fashion Follies of 1934'' (1934) *'' One Exciting Adventure'' (1934) *''

Housewife A housewife (also known as a homemaker or a stay-at-home mother/mom/mum) is a woman whose role is running or managing her family's home—housekeeping, which may include Parenting, caring for her children; cleaning and maintaining the home; Sew ...

'' (1934) *'' Bombay Mail'' (1934) *''

The Man Who Reclaimed His Head ''The Man Who Reclaimed His Head'' is a 1934 American drama film directed by Edward Ludwig and written by Jean Bart (writer), Jean Bart and Samuel Ornitz. The film stars Claude Rains, Joan Bennett, Lionel Atwill, Juanita Quigley, Henry O'Neill an ...

'' (1934) *'' Imitation of Life'' (1934) *'' The Black Cat'' (1934) *'' Midnight Alibi'' (1934) *'' Merry Wives of Reno'' (1934) (uncredited) *'' Ruggles of Red Gap'' (1935) *''

Storm Over the Andes ''Storm Over the Andes'' (aka ''Alas sobre El Chaco'') is a 1935 American adventure film directed by Christy Cabanne and starring Jack Holt (actor), Jack Holt, Antonio Moreno and Mona Barrie. The low-budget programmer is set against the backdrop o ...

'' (1935) *'' Mary Burns, Fugitive'' (1935) *''

Werewolf of London ''Werewolf of London'' is a 1935 horror film directed by Stuart Walker (director), Stuart Walker and starring Henry Hull as the titular werewolf. The supporting cast includes Warner Oland, Valerie Hobson, Lester Matthews, and Spring Byington. ...

'' (1935) (uncredited) *'' The Girl from 10th Avenue'' (1935) *'' Front Page Woman'' (1935) *'' Dracula's Daughter'' (1936) *'' Her Master's Voice'' (1936) *'' Flash Gordon'' (serial, 1936) *'' Three Smart Kids'' (1936) * '' The Girl on the Front Page'' (1936) *'' Stage Struck'' (1936) *'' Times Square Playboy'' (1936) *'' China Clipper'' (1936) *'' It's Love I'm After'' (1937) *'' Stand-In'' (1937) *'' The Perfect Specimen'' (1937) *'' I Met My Love Again'' (1938) *''

Four's a Crowd ''Four's a Crowd'' is a 1938 American screwball comedy, screwball comedy film directed by Michael Curtiz, starring Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland, Rosalind Russell and Patric Knowles. The picture was written by Casey Robinson and Sig Herzig fr ...

'' (1938) *'' Comet Over Broadway'' (1938) *'' Nancy Drew, Reporter'' (1939) *'' Gone with the Wind'' (1939) (uncredited) *'' You Can't Get Away with Murder'' (1939) *'' Invisible Stripes'' (1939) *'' A Child is Born'' (1940) *'' Brother Orchid'' (1940) *'' No Time for Comedy'' (1940) *'' The Man Who Talked Too Much'' (1940) *'' Brother Rat and a Baby'' (1940) *'' British Intelligence'' (1940) *'' My Love Came Back'' (1940) *'' Lady with Red Hair'' (1940) *'' Four Mothers'' (1941) *'' Strawberry Blonde'' (1941) *''

Flight from Destiny ''Flight from Destiny'' is a 1941 American drama film noir directed by Vincent Sherman and written by Barry Trivers. The film stars Geraldine Fitzgerald, Thomas Mitchell, Jeffrey Lynn, James Stephenson, Mona Maris and Jonathan Hale. The f ...

'' (1941) *''

Blues in the Night "Blues in the Night" is a popular blues song which has become a pop standard and is generally considered to be part of the Great American Songbook. The music was written by Harold Arlen, the lyrics by Johnny Mercer, for a 1941 film begun wi ...

'' (1941) *'' The Wagons Roll at Night'' (1941) *'' Affectionately Yours'' (1941) *'' Honeymoon for Three'' (1941) *'' Always in My Heart'' (1942) *'' The Male Animal'' (1942) *'' Wild Bill Hickok Rides'' (1942) (uncredited) *'' Yankee Doodle Dandy'' (1942) *'' Gentleman Jim'' (1942) *'' The Hard Way'' (1943) *'' The Desert Song'' (1943) *'' Make Your Own Bed'' (1944) *'' Janie'' (1944) *'' Shine On, Harvest Moon'' (1944) *'' Too Young to Know'' (1945) *'' O.S.S.'' (1946) *'' Mr. Ace'' (1946) *'' The Fabulous Joe'' (1947) *'' Heaven Only Knows'' (1947) *'' It Had to Be You'' (1947) *'' Down to Earth'' (1947) *'' Christmas Eve'' (1947) *'' Curley'' (1947) *'' The Flame'' (1947) *'' The Lady from Shanghai'' (1947) *'' On Our Merry Way'' (1948) *'' Here Comes Trouble'' (1948) *'' I, Jane Doe'' (1948) *'' Station West'' (1948) *'' Who Killed Doc Robbin'' (1948) *'' The Girl from Manhattan'' (1948) *'' The Fuller Brush Man'' (1948) *'' My Dear Secretary'' (1948) *'' Mr. Soft Touch'' (1949) *'' Lucky Stiff'' (1949) *''

Miss Grant Takes Richmond ''Miss Grant Takes Richmond'' is a 1949 American comedy film directed by Lloyd Bacon, starring Lucille Ball, William Holden, and Janis Carter, and produced and distributed by Columbia Pictures. It was released under the alternative title ''I ...

'' (1949) *'' The Good Humor Man'' (1950) *'' Kill the Umpire'' (1950) *'' Rogues of Sherwood Forest'' (1950) *'' The Fuller Brush Girl'' (1950) *'' Valentino'' (1951) *'' Chicago Calling'' (1952) *'' The Big Trees'' (1952) *'' Jack and the Beanstalk'' (1952) *''

Loan Shark A loan shark is a person who offers loans at Usury, extremely high or illegal interest rates, has strict terms of debt collection, collection, and generally operates criminal, outside the law, often using the threat of violence or other illegal, ...

'' (1952) *'' Three for Bedroom C'' (1952) *'' Ruby Gentry'' (1952) *'' The Moonlighter'' (1953) *'' The Square Jungle'' (1955) *'' Hell's Horizon'' (1955) *'' There's Always Tomorrow'' (1956) *'' The Tall T'' (1957) *'' The Monster That Challenged the World'' (1957) *'' Decision at Sundown'' (1957) *'' Ride Lonesome'' (1959) *''

Lad, A Dog ''Lad: A Dog'' is a 1919 American novel written by Albert Payson Terhune and published by E. P. Dutton. Composed of twelve short stories first published in magazines, the novel is based on the life of Terhune's real-life Rough Collie, Lad. Bor ...

'' (1962)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Roemheld, Heinz American expatriates in France American expatriates in Germany American film score composers American male classical composers American male film score composers American people of German descent Best Original Music Score Academy Award winners Classical musicians from Wisconsin Deaths from pneumonia in California Musicians from Milwaukee Wisconsin Conservatory of Music alumni 1901 births 1985 deaths 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century American classical composers