Heinz Roemheld

1901–1985 · Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA

Biography

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Heinz Roemheld (Milwaukee, May 1, 1901 – Huntington Beach, California, February 11, 1985) was an American composer. Born Heinz Eric Roemheld in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, he was one of four children of German immigrant Heinrich Roemheld and his wife Fanny Rauterberg Roemheld. Heinrich was a pharmacist, but all the members of the family were musical. Heinz's brother Edgar (1898-1964) became a conductor, while sister Irmgard (1904-1995) became a well-known Milwaukee music teacher and radio broadcaster. Roemheld was a child prodigy who began playing the piano at the age of 4. He graduated from the Milwaukee College of Music at 19, and performed in theaters to earn money to study piano in Europe. In 1920, he went to Berlin, where he studied with Hugo Kaun, Ferruccio Busoni, and Egon Petri. While he was there, he appeared in concert with the Berlin Philharmonic. When he returned to America, Roemheld became involved in music for silent films, both as a pianist and as a conductor. In 1925, he was sent back to Berlin as head of Universal Pictures theaters there, but had to leave in 1929 due to the rise of Nazism. 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, and Shine On, Harvest Moon. After World War II, Roemheld once again 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, he retired in 1964 to concentrate on his classical composition. He is best known for the song "Ruby" from the movie Ruby Gentry (1952), which has become a standard. 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, who married game show host Bill Cullen. Roemheld died on February 11, 1985, at a convalescent home in Huntington Beach after contracting pneumonia three weeks earlier.

Sound 209

1960s

1966
Let's Kill Uncle
Music
1963
King Kong vs. Godzilla
Music
54
1962
Lad: A Dog
Music

1950s

1959
Ride Lonesome
Original Music Composer
75
1958
Step Down to Terror
Music
This Is Russia!
Music
1957
Decision at Sundown
Conductor, Original Music Composer
The Land Unknown
Original Music Composer
The Monster That Challenged the World
Conductor, Original Music Composer, Music Director
57
The Tall T
Original Music Composer
79
The Night Runner
Music
1956
The Mole People
Original Music Composer
Pillars of the Sky
Original Music Composer
60
Miami Exposé
Music
Away All Boats
Original Music Composer
60
World in My Corner
Music
The Creature Walks Among Us
Original Music Composer
There's Always Tomorrow
Original Music Composer
1955
The Square Jungle
Original Music Composer
Female on the Beach
Original Music Composer
62
Captain Lightfoot
Music
1953
The Moonlighter
Music
1952
Ruby Gentry
Original Music Composer
Loan Shark
Original Music Composer
Jack and the Beanstalk
Original Music Composer
54
The Big Trees
Original Music Composer
57
1951
Chicago Calling
Original Music Composer
Insurance Investigator
Original Music Composer
Valentino
Original Music Composer
1950
Union Station
Original Music Composer
67
The Fuller Brush Girl
Original Music Composer
Kill the Umpire
Original Music Composer
The Good Humor Man
Original Music Composer