Stephen J. Lawrence (September 5, 1939 – December 30, 2021) was an American composer, who lived and worked in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. He was also known as Stephen Lawrence, but used his middle initial to differentiate him from the singer

Steve Lawrence Steve Lawrence (born Sidney Liebowitz; July 8, 1935) is an American singer, comedian and actor, best known as a member of a duo with his wife Eydie Gormé, billed as " Steve and Eydie", and for his performance as Maury Sline, the manager and fr ...

Early life and career

Lawrence was born on September 5, 1939. He gained his B.A. in music from

Hofstra University Hofstra University is a private university in Hempstead, New York. It is Long Island's largest private university. Hofstra originated in 1935 as an extension of New York University (NYU) under the name Nassau College – Hofstra Memorial of Ne ...

and during his lifetime composed more than 300 songs and scores for ''

Sesame Street ''Sesame Street'' is an American educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Workshop until June 2000) a ...

'', resulting in three

Emmy Award 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 ...

s for Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction and Composition. He also composed the title song and four others for

Marlo Thomas Margaret Julia "Marlo" Thomas (born November 21, 1937) is an American actress, producer, author, and social activist. She is best known for starring on the sitcom ''That Girl'' (1966–1971) and her children's franchise '' Free to Be... You and ...

's '' Free to Be... You and Me'', the landmark million-selling record, book and Emmy Award- and

Peabody Award The George Foster Peabody Awards (or simply Peabody Awards or the Peabodys) program, named for the American businessman and philanthropist George Peabody, honor the most powerful, enlightening, and invigorating stories in television, radio, and ...

-winning ABC television special; composed the million-selling Gold Record '' You Take My Breath Away''; scored the 1973

Robert De Niro Robert Anthony De Niro Jr. ( , ; born August 17, 1943) is an American actor. Known for his collaborations with Martin Scorsese, he is considered to be one of the best actors of his generation. De Niro is the recipient of various accolades ...

movie ''

Bang the Drum Slowly ''Bang the Drum Slowly'' is a novel by Mark Harris, first published in 1956 by Knopf. The novel is the second in a series of four novels written by Harris that chronicles the career of baseball player Henry W. Wiggen. ''Bang the Drum Slowly'' ...

'' and the cult horror classic ''

Alice, Sweet Alice ''Alice, Sweet Alice'' (originally titled ''Communion'') is a 1976 American psychological slasher film co-written and directed by Alfred Sole, and starring Linda Miller, Paula Sheppard, and Brooke Shields in her film debut. Set in 1961 New Jers ...

'' (1976), which won the music award at the Paris International Festival of Fantasy and Science Fiction; composed score for ''

One Summer Love ''One Summer Love'', originally titled ''Dragonfly'', is a 1976 romantic drama film directed by Gilbert Cates from a screenplay by N. Richard Nash. It stars Beau Bridges and Susan Sarandon and features Mildred Dunnock and Ann Wedgeworth. Plot ...

'' (1976), a.k.a. ''Dragonfly'', composed the songs and score for the 1989 live-action movie musical ''

Red Riding Hood "Little Red Riding Hood" is a European fairy tale about a young girl and a sly wolf. Its origins can be traced back to several pre-17th century European folk tales. The two best known versions were written by Charles Perrault and the Broth ...

'' starring

Isabella Rossellini Isabella Fiorella Elettra Giovanna Rossellini (born 18 June 1952) is an Italian-American actress, author, philanthropist, and model. The daughter of the Swedish actress Ingrid Bergman and the Italian film director Roberto Rossellini, she is noted ...

and

Craig T. Nelson Craig Theodore Nelson (born April 4, 1944) is an American actor. He is known for his roles as Hayden Fox in the sitcom ''Coach'' (for which he won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series), Deputy Ward Wilson in the 19 ...

, lyrics by

Michael Korie Michael Korie (born April 1, 1955) is an American librettist and lyricist whose writing for musical theater and opera includes the musicals ''Grey Gardens'' and '' Far From Heaven'', and the operas ''Harvey Milk'' and ''The Grapes of Wrath''. His ...

; composed songs for the live-action movie musical ''

The Emperor's New Clothes "The Emperor's New Clothes" ( da, Kejserens nye klæder ) is a literary folktale written by Danish author Hans Christian Andersen, about a vain emperor who gets exposed before his subjects. The tale has been translated into over 100 languages.A ...

'', starring

Sid Caesar Isaac Sidney Caesar (September 8, 1922 – February 12, 2014) was an American comic actor, comedian and writer. With a career spanning 60 years, he was best known for two pioneering 1950s live television series: ''Your Show of Shows'' (1950� ...

and

Robert Morse Robert Alan Morse (May 18, 1931 – April 20, 2022) was an American actor, who starred in ''How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying'', both the 1961 original Broadway production, for which he won a Tony Award, and its 1967 film adaptati ...

; composed songs and score for ''The Tale of Peter Rabbit'', an HBO animated musical starring

Carol Burnett Carol Creighton Burnett (born April 26, 1933) is an American actress, comedian, singer, and writer. Her groundbreaking comedy variety show ''The Carol Burnett Show'', which originally aired on CBS was one of the first of its kind to be hosted ...

, lyrics by

Sheldon Harnick Sheldon Mayer Harnick (born April 30, 1924) is an American lyricist and songwriter best known for his collaborations with composer Jerry Bock on musicals such as ''Fiorello!'' and ''Fiddler on the Roof''. Early life Sheldon Mayer Harnick was bo ...

Personal life and death

He married Christine Jones in 1984, and their daughter Hannah was born two years later. After divorcing, he then married Cathy Schwartzman in 2002. He was the Music Director of Temple Sinai, Stamford, Connecticut, from that year until 2012. Lawrence died in

Belleville, New Jersey Belleville (French: "Belle ville" meaning "Beautiful city / town") is a township in Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States Census, the township's population was 38,222, reflecting an increase of 6.4% from th ...

, on December 30, 2021, at the age of 82.

Awards and nominations

* Three

Emmy Awards 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 ...

: Outstanding Music Direction and Composition,

1989-1990, 2001-2002, and 2002-2003. *

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 ...

nominations for Sesame Street: 2008, 2004, 1999-2001, 1995-1997, 1994-1995, 1989-1990. *

certificate for Free To Be...You And Me, 1974. *

certificate for Hot Hero Sandwich (Title Song), 1979-1980. *

Gold Single Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

for You Take My Breath Away - Sales of one million records. 1978. Sung by Rex Smith. Lyrics by Bruce Hart. *

Gold Album Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

for Free to Be... You and Me - Composed the title song and four others for Marlo Thomas's Free to Be... You and Me, the landmark million-selling record, book and Emmy Award - and Peabody Award-winning ABC television special (1972). Musical Director. *

Gold Record Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile meta ...

for ''Sooner Or Later'', the soundtrack of the 1979 NBC TV movie which included " You Take My Breath Away", signifying sales of 500,000 copies. * Music Award from the Paris International Film Festival of Fantasy and Science Fiction for

(also known as 'Communion').

TV credits

* ''

'' Television series. Composed over 300 songs and scores. Won three Emmys for “Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction and Composition. Arranger and Conductor. 1984-2012. * '' Free to Be... You and Me''.

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

television special based on the record and book, 1974. Composed title song and four others; Musical Director and Arranger. * '' Sooner or Later''.

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

television movie, 1979. Composed original songs and score. * ''

It Happened One Christmas ''It Happened One Christmas'' is a 1977 American made-for-television Christmas fantasy-comedy-drama film directed by Donald Wrye, starring Marlo Thomas, Wayne Rogers, Orson Welles, and Cloris Leachman. It originally premiered as ''The ABC Sunday ...

''.

Universal Universal is the adjective for universe. Universal may also refer to: Companies * NBCUniversal, a media and entertainment company ** Universal Animation Studios, an American Animation studio, and a subsidiary of NBCUniversal ** Universal TV, a t ...

/ABC television movie, 1977; starring

and

Orson Welles George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter, known for his innovative work in film, radio and theatre. He is considered to be among the greatest and most influential f ...

. Composed score. * '' Sesame Street Jam: A Musical Celebration''. Sesame Street musical special, 1993-1994. Composed songs. * '' Sesame Street Celebrates Around the World''. Sesame Street New Year's Eve television special, 1993. Composed songs and score. * '' Don't Eat the Pictures: Sesame Street at the Metropolitan Museum of Art''. Sesame Street television special, 1983. Composed songs. * ''

The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss ''The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss'' is an American children's puppet television series based on characters created by Dr. Seuss, produced by The Jim Henson Company. It aired from October 13, 1996, to December 28, 1998, on Nickelodeon. It combin ...

''.

Jim Henson Productions The Jim Henson Company (formerly known as Muppets, Inc., Henson Associates, Inc., and Jim Henson Productions, Inc.; commonly referred to as Henson) is an American entertainment company located in Los Angeles, California. The company is known for ...

and

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television television channel, channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its List of assets owned by Param ...

television series, 1996–97. Composed score. * "

The Tale of Peter Rabbit ''The Tale of Peter Rabbit'' is a children's book written and illustrated by Beatrix Potter that follows mischievous and disobedient young Peter Rabbit as he gets into, and is chased around, the garden of Mr. McGregor. He escapes and returns ho ...

". An episode of

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

's ''Storybook Musicals'' series, an animated musical starring

. Lyrics by

. Written by

Tony Geiss Nicholas Anthony "Tony" Geiss (November 16, 1924 – January 21, 2011) was an American producer, screenwriter, songwriter and author, known principally for his children's work. Biography Geiss was born in The Bronx to Alexander Geiss and Ma ...

. Composed songs and score. * '' Trackdown: Finding the Goodbar Killer'' – TV movie, Produced by Grosso-Jacobson. Composed score. * ''Dorothy In The Land of Oz'' – Animated television special that aired on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...

in 1980. Starring

. Composed songs and score. * '' Hothouse'' –

Lorimar Lorimar Productions, Inc., later known as Lorimar Television and Lorimar Distribution, was an American production company that was later a subsidiary of Warner Bros., active from 1969 until 1993, when it was folded into Warner Bros. Televisio ...

/, ABC television series. Composed score. * ''Feeling Good'' –

Children's Television Workshop Sesame Workshop (SW), originally known as the Children's Television Workshop (CTW), is an American nonprofit organization that has been responsible for the production of several educational children's programs—including its first and best-know ...

series. 1971-1972. Composer and music director.

Film credits

* ''

Jennifer on My Mind ''Jennifer on My Mind'' is a 1971 American drama film based on the 1968 novel ''Heir'' by Roger L. Simon. It was directed by Noel Black from a screenplay by Erich Segal, stars Michael Brandon and Tippy Walker, and features Robert De Niro in a min ...

'' (1971) starring

Michael Brandon Michael Brandon (born Michael Feldman; April 20, 1945) is an American actor. He is known for his role as James Dempsey in the British drama series ''Dempsey and Makepeace'' (1985–1986). His theatre credits include the original Broadway (theat ...

and

Tippy Walker Tippy Walker (born February 19, 1947) is an American former actress, best known for her role in the film ''The World of Henry Orient'' (1964). Born Elizabeth Tipton Walker in New York City, her father was an engineer with Allied Chemical Corpor ...

. Composed score. * ''

Hurry Up, or I'll Be 30 ''Hurry Up, or I'll Be 30'' (also known as ''I Am Waiting No More'') is a 1973 American comedy-drama film starring John Lefkowitz, Linda De Coff, and Danny DeVito. The film was directed by Joseph Jacoby. This film is one of several critically ac ...

'' (1973) starring

Danny DeVito Daniel Michael DeVito Jr. (born November 17, 1944) is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He gained prominence for his portrayal of the taxi dispatcher Louie De Palma in the television series ''Taxi'' (1978–1983), which won him a Gold ...

. Composed score. * ''

'' (1973) starring

Michael Moriarty Michael Moriarty (born April 5, 1941) is an American-Canadian actor and jazz musician. He received an Emmy Award and Golden Globe Award for his first acting role on American television as a Nazi SS officer in the 1978 mini-series ''Holocaust'' ...

and

Vincent Gardenia Vincent Gardenia (born Vincenzo Scognamiglio; January 7, 1920 – December 9, 1992) was an Italian-American stage, film, and television actor. He was nominated twice for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, first for ''Bang the Drum Slow ...

. Composed original score and arranged additional music. * ''

'' (1976), also released as ''Dragonfly'', starring

Susan Sarandon Susan Abigail Sarandon (; née Tomalin; born October 4, 1946) is an American actorMcCabe, Bruce"Susan Sarandon, the 'actor'" ''Boston Globe''. April 17, 1981. Retrieved January 21, 2021. and activist. She is the recipient of various accolades, ...

and

Beau Bridges Lloyd Vernet "Beau" Bridges III (born December 9, 1941) is an American actor and director. He is a three-time Emmy, two-time Golden Globe and one-time Grammy Award winner, as well as a two-time Screen Actors Guild Award nominee. Bridges was a ...

. Composed score. * ''

'' (1976), also known as ''Communion'', starring

Brooke Shields Brooke Christa Shields (born May 31, 1965) is an American actress and model. She was initially a child model and gained critical acclaim at age 12 for her leading role in Louis Malle's film ''Pretty Baby'' (1978). She continued to model into ...

. Composed score. * ''Mirrors'' (1978) starring

Kitty Winn Katherine Tupper "Kitty" Winn (born February 21, 1943) is a former American actress. She is best known for her roles as the opioid use disorder, heroin addict Helen in the romantic drama ''The Panic in Needle Park'' (1971), for which she won the ...

. Composed score. * ''The Emperor's New Clothes'' (1987). Live action musical starring

and

. Composed songs. Lyrics by Michael Korie. * ''

'' (1989). Live action musical starring

and

. Composed songs and score. Lyrics by Michael Korie. * Music supervisor for seven live action feature musicals: Cannon MovieTales.

Theater

* ''Now Is The Time For All Good Men''. 1967. Music Director and Co-Orchestrator. * Composed incidental music for ''Little Duck'' by

Billy Aronson Billy Aronson is an American playwright and writer, who originated the concept of the rock opera ''Rent'', which was based on Puccini's opera ''La bohème''.Jones, Kenneth (2011)Rent, With Andy Mientus, Fabio Monteiro, Halle Morse, Begins at Pion ...

at Ensemble Studio Theater. 2009 * Composed three songs for '' A... My Name Is Alice''. Outer Critics Drama Award. * Composed incidental music for the

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

play ''The Big Love'' starring

Tracey Ullman Tracey Ullman (born Trace Ullman, 30 December 1959) is a British-American actress, comedian, singer, writer, producer, and director. Her earliest mainstream appearances were on British television sketch comedy shows ''A Kick Up the Eighties'' (wi ...

. * Composed incidental score for

Manhattan Theater Club Manhattan Theatre Club (MTC) is a theatre company located in New York City, affiliated with the League of Resident Theatres. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Lynne Meadow and Executive Producer Barry Grove, Manhattan Theatre Club has gr ...

production of ''Some People, Some Other People, And What They Finally Do''. * Composed score for '' No Dogs Allowed'', a children's musical. Book by

Sonia Manzano Sonia Manzano (born 1950) is an American actress, screenwriter, author, singer and songwriter. She is best known for playing Maria on ''Sesame Street'' from 1971 to 2015. She received a Lifetime Achievement Daytime Emmy Award in 2016. Her memo ...

, Lyrics by

. Commissioned by Actor's Playhouse,

Coral Gables, Florida Coral Gables, officially City of Coral Gables, is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida. The city is located southwest of Downtown Miami. As of the 2020 U.S. census, it had a population of 49,248. Coral Gables is known globally as home to the ...

2006. Revived 2008. New production at

Atlantic Theater Company Atlantic Theater Company is an Off-Broadway non-profit theater, whose mission is to produce great plays "simply and truthfully utilizing an artistic ensemble." The company was founded in 1985 by David Mamet, William H. Macy, and 30 of their actin ...

2009. * Composed songs for American history musicals for children for his company, Quill Entertainment Company. Shows include: ''Everybody's Watching: The Making of the

Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of Legal entity, entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When ...

'', ''Glory Road (

Harriet Tubman Harriet Tubman (born Araminta Ross, March 10, 1913) was an American abolitionist and social activist. Born into slavery, Tubman escaped and subsequently made some 13 missions to rescue approximately 70 slaves, including family and friends, us ...

and the

Underground Railroad The Underground Railroad was a network of clandestine routes and safe houses established in the United States during the early- to mid-19th century. It was used by enslaved African Americans primarily to escape into free states and Canada. T ...

)'', ''Dream (

Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...

and the

Montgomery bus boycott The Montgomery bus boycott was a political and social protest campaign against the policy of racial segregation on the public transit system of Montgomery, Alabama. It was a foundational event in the civil rights movement in the United States ...

)'', ''

Paul Revere Paul Revere (; December 21, 1734 O.S. (January 1, 1735 N.S.)May 10, 1818) was an American silversmith, engraver, early industrialist, Sons of Liberty member, and Patriot and Founding Father. He is best known for his midnight ride to ale ...

Rides Again'' * ''Blue Roses'' (based on ''The Glass Menagerie''). 2014. Orchestration consultant.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lawrence, Stephen J. 1939 births 2021 deaths 21st-century American composers 21st-century American male musicians American male composers Composers from New York City Sesame Street crew