Film Music Pioneer, Basil Poledouris dead at 61

For those of us who follow motion picture music--the works of composers like John Williams, Hans Zimmer, and Ennio Morricone--the news that Basil Poledouris had passed away yesterday, was a great shock. And a sad revelation.

Poledouris, the USC grad and composer of famous soundtracks like Conan the Barbarian, Robocop, and Hunt For Red October was 61 when his extended bout with cancer finally ended. Over the years, Poledouris has been inflicted with multiple tumors, including in the lung and brain. He had experienced some remission in recent years (enough to get back into his favorite hobby: sailing), but it eventually came back, and he passed away in Los Angeles yesterday.

In the past few years, the film music world has mourned the loss of composers like Jerry Goldsmith and Elmer Bernstein. Now add Basil Poledouris to the list of greats who has passed on, leaving behind a legacy of music that will continue to have its mark on movie and soundtrack enthusiasts everywhere. Basil was best known for broad, sweeping orchestral compositions (a la The Blue Lagoon and Starship Troopers), but some of his most gallant additions to the soundtrack world were heavily synthesized works (as in Love for the Game and Red Dawn). Though he never received an Academy Award, we did win an Emmy for his work on the TV series Lonesome Dove and lived to see his music performed on many grand stages, including during the opening of the Centennial Olympics in Atlanta, when his original piece "Tradition of the Games" was used.

Though he will probably be remembered mostly for his work on the brass-heavy, fanfaric Conan films, Basil's soundtracks spanned numerous genres and touched on many themes, from romance and childishness, to horror and high fantasy.

Mr. Poledouris--you will be greatly missed!

The family has also requested that you be in prayer for them during this difficult time. Basil had two daughters, one of which--Zoe--had helped him with various soundtrack ventures (including Conan the Barbarian and Starship Troopers).

Selected filmography of soundtracks Basil Poledouris composed (source: IMDB):

1. The Touch (2002)

2. Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles (2001)

3. Love and Treason (2001) (TV)

4. For Love of the Game (1999)

5. Misérables, Les (1998)

6. Starship Troopers (1997)

7. Amanda (1996)

8. The War at Home (1996)

9. Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home (1995)

10. Under Siege 2: Dark Territory (1995)

11. The Jungle Book (1994)

12. Lassie (1994)

13. Serial Mom (1994)

14. On Deadly Ground (1994)

15. "Return to Lonesome Dove" (1993) (mini) TV Series (themes)

16. Free Willy (1993)

17. RoboCop 3 (1993)

18. Wind (1992)

19. Return to the Blue Lagoon (1991)

20. Flight of the Intruder (1991)

21. White Fang (1991/I)

22. Quigley Down Under (1990)

23. The Hunt for Red October (1990)

24. Farewell to the King (1989)

25. "Lonesome Dove" (1989) (mini) TV Series

26. Spellbinder (1988)

27. Intrigue (1988) (TV)

28. No Man's Land (1987)

29. RoboCop (1987)

30. Iron Eagle (1986)

31. "Misfits of Science" (1985) TV Series

32. Misfits of Science (1985) (TV)

33. "The Twilight Zone" (1985) TV Series

34. Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1985) (TV)

35. Protocol (1984)

36. Red Dawn (1984)

37. Conan the Destroyer (1984)

38. Amazons (1984) (TV)

39. The House of God (1984)

40. Single Bars, Single Women (1984) (TV)

41. Flyers (1983)

42. Summer Lovers (1982)

43. Conan the Barbarian (1982)

44. Fire on the Mountain (1981) (TV)

45. A Whale for the Killing (1981) (TV)

46. The Blue Lagoon (1980)

He had been going to score several other projects in the near future, including Igor and Bunyan and Babe. No word yet how far into those scoring enterprises he was and whether or not his music will see an album release.