JOHNNY MANDEL

(23 November 1925 - 29 June 2020)

The American composer-orchestrator-arranger Johnny Mandel, who has died aged 94, was one of the busiest musicians in Hollywood. He wrote and conducted music for films and TV for over fifty years. From an early age he learned to play piano, trumpet and trombone and as a teenager began working with famous bands from 1940 onwards. He wrote popular songs and jazz and worked with singers including Sinatra, Streisand, Natalie Cole, Peggy Lee, Tony Bennett and Shirley Horn. His first film score was for I Want to Live! in 1958 and he subsequently wrote for The Americanisation of Emily, Harper, The Russians Are Coming! The Russians Are Coming!, Point Blank, Under the Yum Yum Tree, M*A*S*H, Freaky Friday, Agatha, Being There, Caddyshack and The Verdict, among countless others. His song, ‘The Shadow of Your Smile’ from The Sandpiper, won him his only Academy Award as well as one of his five Grammys. The theme song ‘Suicide Is Painless’ for M*A*S*H is probably his most memorable tune and that too won several awards for being the Most Performed Theme. Johnny Mandel’s marriage to Lois Lee ended in divorce. He then married Martha Louise Blanner and they have a daughter, Marissa.

MICHAEL DARVELL