Hoyt Stoddard Curtin(September 9, 1922 – December 3, 2000) was an Americancomposerandmusic producer,the primary musical director for theHanna-Barberaanimationstudio from its beginnings withThe Ruff & Reddy Showin 1957 until his retirement in 1989, except from 1965 to 1972, when the primary music director wasTed Nichols.[1][2]
Hoyt Curtin | |
|---|---|
| Born | Hoyt Stoddard Curtin September 9, 1922 Downey, California,U.S. |
| Died | December 3, 2000(aged 78) |
| Alma mater | University of Southern California |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1957–1989 |
| Employer | Hanna-Barbera |
Biography
editCurtin was a native ofDowney, California,and had one son, Chris, with his wife Elizabeth.
In the 1950s Curtin was an in-demand composer for TV commercials. He first metWilliam HannaandJoseph Barberawhen he worked on aSchlitzbeer commercial they were producing forMGMin 1957.
- "About two weeks later they called and had a lyric they read over the phone. Could I write a tune for it? I called back in 5 minutes and sang it to them... silence... uh oh, I bombed out... the next thing I heard was a deal to record it!Ruff & Reddy.At that moment they had quit at MGM and started their own company. All of our first main titles were done in that fashion.Huckleberry Hound,Quick Draw McGraw,etc. ".[3]
He was the composer of many of the Hanna-Barbera popular cartoons' theme songs, includingThe Flintstonesuntil 1981,Top Cat,The Jetsons,Jonny Quest,Super Friends,Josie and the Pussycats,The Smurfs,andThe New Scooby-Doo Moviesand all its spinoffs until 1989. Beginning in 1960, Curtin also composed many of thestock tunesused as incidental music in the various Hanna-Barbera series, along with the jingle heard underneath Hanna-Barbera'sclosing logoin 1979. He also composed two of the tunes heard in the background in 1959'sPlan 9 from Outer Space,although he was embarrassed by the film's poor quality. The following year, Curtin was the composer for the animated seriesQ.T. Hush,one of the first cartoons to appear in color.
His other credits include the score for the science-fiction filmMesa of Lost Women(1953),Ed Wood'sJail Bait(1954, as Hoyt Kurtain),Timber Tramps(1975),C.H.O.M.P.S.(1979), and the music for the 1978Sandy FrankcartoonBattle of the Planetsfor which a soundtrack was released in 2000. He also composed and conducted the music forThrillerama Adventure,a two-projector attempt at replicatingCinerama,in 1955 with a 38-piece orchestra.
In a 1999 interview Curtin said, "My pianist, Jack Cookerly,[4]invented the synthesizer as we know it forJonny Quest.It was made of orange crates with a keyboard and thousands of vacuum tubes! A regular jazz band, (of) 4 trumpets, 6 [trom]bones, 5 woodwind doublers, 5-man rhythm section including percussion "; was used to record the music for the Jonny Quest cartoon. The Jonny Quest session was done"...at RCA in Hollywood.Alvin StollerorFrankie Cappusually played drums. I always tried to get the same guys where possible. They were the ones who could swing and read like demons. "[5]
Death
editCurtin died on December 3, 2000, inThousand Oaks, California,at age 78.[1]He was on the tennis court playing a match when he fell to the ground and was pronounced dead by the paramedics.
References
edit- ^abWoo, Elaine (December 11, 2000)."Hoyt Curtin; Composer of Cartoon Music".LA Times.Retrieved2010-08-24.
- ^Doll, Pancho (June 2, 1994)."REEL LIFE / FILM & VIDEO FILE: Music Helped 'Flintstones' on Way to Fame: In 1960, Hoyt Curtin created the lively theme for the Stone Age family. The show's producers say it may be the most frequently broadcast song on TV".The Los Angeles Times.Retrieved2010-11-10.
- ^Gary Karpinski - email interview with Hoyt Curtin, 1999
- ^"Jack Cookerly".
- ^"A Conversation with Hoyt Curtin".