Alexander Courage

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Alexander Courage (born December 10, 1919) is a 20th century American orchestrator, arranger and composer of music, primarily for television and motion pictures.


Contents

[edit] Radio

During World War II, Courage began composing for radio. His credits in this medium include Broadway is My Beat, Hollywood Soundstage, and Romance.

[edit] Motion picture work

Courage began as an orchestrator/arranger at MGM studios, which included work in such films as Show Boat ("Life Upon the Wicked Stage" number), The Band Wagon ("I Guess I'll Have to Change My Plan") and Gigi (the can-can for the entrance of patrons at Maxim's), and the barn-raising dance from Seven Brides for Seven Brothers.

He frequently served as orchestrator for Andre Previn (My Fair Lady, the "The Circus is a Wacky World" and "You're Gonna Hear from Me" production numbers for Inside Daisy Clover), Adolph Deutsch (Funny Face, Some Like it Hot), John Williams (Superman, The Poseidon Adventure, Jurassic Park, and the the Academy Award-nominated musical films Tom Sawyer, and Fiddler on the Roof), and Jerry Goldsmith (The Mummy, Mulan, Rudy, et. al.).

Courage continued writing music for films throughout the 1990s to present day - including the score for Superman IV: The Quest for Peace.

[edit] Television work

He is probably best known for writing the theme music to the original Star Trek television series, but also worked as composer on such shows as Lost in Space, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, and Daniel Boone.

Jerry Goldsmith and Courage also teamed on the long-running TV show The Waltons, in which Goldsmith composed the theme and Courage scored the Aaron Copland-influenced incidental music.

[edit] Trivia

Words were written for Courage's Star Trek theme by creator Gene Roddenberry, not because Roddenberry ever expected the words to be sung, but because by claiming acknowledgement as the co-writer he earned half of the royalties from the song.

[edit] External links

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