Biography
Morris W. Stoloff was a musical composer. Stoloff worked with Sammy Davis Jr., Dinah Shore and Frank Sinatra. Stoloff worked as music director at Columbia Pictures from 1936 to 1962. Among space age pop fans, he is best remembered for his 1956 Top 10 hit that paired the swing era tune "Moonglow" with the love theme from the movie Picnic, the medley called "Moonglow and Theme from Picnic". It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc by the RIAA. Stoloff was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. A child prodigy on the violin, Stoloff was taken under the wing of W. A. Clark. After studying with Leopold Auer for several years, Stoloff was touring the U.S. as a featured soloist at the age of 16, and joined the Los Angeles Philharmonic a year later as its youngest member ever. When sound came to motion pictures, studios came looking for musicians to provide it, and Stoloff was one of the first to cross over from classical music to movies. He was the first concertmaster on Paramount Pictures' payroll, and he worked with setting up the mechanics of a system that had to provide a steady stream of music for everything from epic dramas to serials and comedy shorts. In 1936, Stoloff moved over to Columbia Pictures, where he took the title of music director, a new position unique to the studio system. As music director, he was the chief executive responsible for providing musical production support to every film the studio released. This meant matching up composers, orchestrators, conductors, musicians and recording facilities to meet the creative scope of each project as well as its schedule and budget. Stoloff often took partial credit for a picture's score when he worked closely with a particular composer to work out a theme, motifs, and melodies. As a result, he ranks among some of the most-nominated individuals in the history of the Academy Awards. He won three Oscars for best scores, including those for Cover Girl (1944), The Jolson Story (1946), and Song Without End (1960), and was nominated 14 other times. By the late 1940s, film music was beginning to be recognized on its own, and Stoloff began recording some of the more popular numbers as singles for Decca Records. When long-play albums were perfected, the studios saw the opportunity to market more than just singles to the listening audience, and soundtrack albums became a hot commodity. Stoloff exercised his privilege as musical director to record these soundtrack albums himself, working with material from the actual scores. When Frank Sinatra founded Reprise Records in the early 1960s, he hired Stoloff as musical director; the two having worked successfully before on Pal Joey (1957). One of Stoloff's most noteworthy achievements while at Reprise was the release of a set of re-recordings of great Broadway musicals, including Kiss Me, Kate with a studio cast. Stoloff died in Los Angeles, California, aged 81.
Sound 169
1960s
- 1965
- 1962
- 1960
Song Without End
Music Supervisor
1950s
- 1959
1001 Arabian Nights
Conductor
The Last Angry Man
Conductor
- 1958
- 1957
Pal Joey
Music Supervisor, Conductor
Jeanne Eagels
Conductor
The Shadow on the Window
Conductor
Not One Shall Die
Conductor
- 1956
Full of Life
Conductor
Nightfall
Conductor
- 1955
The Last Frontier
Conductor
Three Stripes in the Sun
Conductor
Queen Bee
Conductor
5 Against the House
Conductor
Tight Spot
Conductor
The Violent Men
Conductor
- 1954
- 1953
Let's Do It Again
Music Director
The Juggler
Music Director
- 1952
Eight Iron Men
Music Director
Assignment: Paris
Music Director
Captain Pirate
Music Director
Affair in Trinidad
Music Director
The Brigand
Music Director
Paula
Music Director
Scandal Sheet
Music Director
- 1951
Man in the Saddle
Music Director
The Son of Dr. Jekyll
Music Director
The Lady and the Bandit
Music Director
Lorna Doone
Music Director
The Harlem Globetrotters
Music Director
Santa Fe
Music Director
- 1950
The Flying Missile
Music Director
Stage to Tucson
Music Director
Harriet Craig
Music Director
The Killer That Stalked New York
Music Director
The Fuller Brush Girl
Music Director
Convicted
Music Director
Fortunes of Captain Blood
Music Director
Kill the Umpire
Music Director
A Woman of Distinction
Music Director
1940s
- 1949
And Baby Makes Three
Music Director
Tell It to the Judge
Music Director
Miss Grant Takes Richmond
Music Director
Jolson Sings Again
Original Music Composer
Mr. Soft Touch
Music Director
Slightly French
Music Director
Shockproof
Music Director
- 1948
The Return of October
Music Director
The Untamed Breed
Music Director
The Sign of the Ram
Music Director
- 1947
It Had to Be You
Music Director
Her Husband's Affairs
Music Director
Framed
Music Director
Johnny O'Clock
Music Director
- 1946
Gallant Journey
Music Director
Meet Me on Broadway
Original Music Composer
- 1945
Over 21
Music Director
- 1944
Together Again
Music Director
Strange Affair
Music Director
Secret Command
Music
Address Unknown
Music Director
The Ghost That Walks Alone
Music Director
None Shall Escape
Music Director
- 1943
The Chance of a Lifetime
Music Director
Footlight Glamour
Original Music Composer
Dangerous Blondes
Music Director
Destroyer
Music Director
Passport to Suez
Music Director
First Comes Courage
Music Director
Appointment in Berlin
Music Director
It's a Great Life
Original Music Composer
The More the Merrier
Music Director
Murder in Times Square
Music Director
Something to Shout About
Original Music Composer
- 1942
A Night to Remember
Music Director
The Boogie Man Will Get You
Music Director
Overland to Deadwood
Music Director
My Sister Eileen
Other
Counter-Espionage
Music Director
Atlantic Convoy
Music Director
Submarine Raider
Music Director
Meet the Stewarts
Music Director
Blondie's Blessed Event
Music Director
Alias Boston Blackie
Music Director
Blondie Goes to College
Music Director
- 1941
Honolulu Lu
Music Director
Confessions of Boston Blackie
Music Director
Secrets of the Lone Wolf
Music Director
Three Girls About Town
Music Director
The Blonde from Singapore
Music Director
Ladies in Retirement
Music Director
The Devil Commands
Original Music Composer, Music Director
Time Out for Rhythm
Music Director
The Lone Wolf Takes a Chance
Music Director
Blondie Goes Latin
Original Music Composer
- 1940
The Lone Wolf Keeps a Date
Music Director
Blondie Plays Cupid
Original Music Composer
Before I Hang
Music Director
Blondie Has Servant Trouble
Original Music Composer
Girls of the Road
Music Director
The Lone Wolf Meets a Lady
Music Director
Island of Doomed Men
Music Director
Men Without Souls
Music Director
The Doctor Takes a Wife
Music Director
The Man with Nine Lives
Music Director
Blondie on a Budget
Original Music Composer
Convicted Woman
Music Director
The Lone Wolf Strikes
Music Director
1930s
- 1939
The Amazing Mr. Williams
Music Director
Golden Boy
Music Director
The Man They Could Not Hang
Music Director
Good Girls Go to Paris
Music
Mandrake the Magician
Music Director
The Lady and the Mob
Music Director
Let Us Live
Music Director
- 1938
Smashing the Spy Ring
Music Director
Girls' School
Original Music Composer
South of Arizona
Music
West of Cheyenne
Music
Call of the Rockies
Music
Penitentiary
Music Director
- 1937
Murder in Greenwich Village
Music Director
It Happened in Hollywood
Music Director
Criminals of the Air
Music Director
Westbound Mail
Music
- 1936
Theodora Goes Wild
Music Director
Code of the Range
Music
Craig's Wife
Music Director
