The Best of All Worlds - a fan salute to EARLE HAGEN
Earle Hagen Home Page
to the BEST OF ALL WORLDS
A salute to the life and music of Earle Hagen
Earle Hagen played trombone with the celebrated Tommy Dorsey (with Earle Hagen at right) and Benny Goodman big bands, and while with the Ray Noble Orchestra, composed one of the greatest standards of them all, Harlem Nocturne.
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Oscar-nominated as joint Musical Director for Let's Make Love, he orchestrated films for 20th Century Fox during its Golden Age , including some of its top musicals, later also working as principal scorer .
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An arranger for many top stars, he was also leader of the Spencer-Hagen orchestra, backing the foremost vocalists in show business, in addition to making albums of his own.
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As a pioneer of television music, Earle Hagen formed an independent contracting company, and scored more than 4000 hours of programming. Best known for his infectious theme for The Andy Griffith Show, sometimes working on as many as five weekly series at the same time, he also composed the music for other perennial favorites like The Dick Van Dyke Show, The MOD Squad, The Danny Thomas Show, That Girl, and all the Mayberry-centered series.
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His Emmy-winning scccccore for the I Spy series broke new ground and set standards in television music which have seldom been matched.
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Earle Hagen is the author of the principal text books on Scoring for Film as well as teaching hundreds of emerging young composers for his BMI scoring workshops.
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In his “retirement” years, Earle Hagen has composed the music for a stage musical, acted as impresario for jazz concerts, written his autobiography, “Memories of A Famous Composer Nobody Ever Heard Of” and produced a DVD for singer Laura Gunn (since January 2005, Mrs. Earle Hagen ). His 85th birthday was celebrated at the Hollywood Bowl with a gala concert.
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Laura and Earle Hagen
When one considers the vast range Earle Hagen's career has covered, and just where he was at each stage in his life - playing trombone in the big bands during the 30s, writing arrangements for Frank Sinatra, working at 20th Century Fox during the reign of Alfred Newman, creating TV themes and scores for Sheldon Leonard shows, not to mention teaching brilliant young composers the art of scoring, and publishing the top texts in his field - it can truly be said that he has lived through the best times in each of these worlds.
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and after you've learned about still more of his other talents on the last of these entries, remember that we haven't even mentioned one for which he has been heard but not seen, with one of the best-known whistling performances of them all - that on The Andy Griffith Show theme!
On Sunday, April 20, 2008 Earle Hagen was honored by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences with a Gold Circle Award for 50 years of outstanding contributions to the medium.
Having overcome an extremely serious illness this past month, thanks to his own fabulous and indomitable spirit as well as prayers from fans around the world (but most especially all the TLC from the wonderful Laura), Earle was able to not only accept his Gold Circle Award in person from actor Robert Culp, but exhibit the joie de vivre which endears us all to him.
Other inductees into the TV Academy's Gold Circle included (from left) Robert Loggia, James MacArthur, Ann-Margret, Paul Apodaca, Keely Smith, Earle Hagen (looking so great!), and Cal Ahlers. (photo by Del Francis, courtesy of The Desert Sun)
Long-time friend Jon Burlingame offers a closer look at the ceremonies on the Film Music Society website
All the above could not have been possible without the companionship, love and support of his wife of six decades, Lou Hagen, who in heaven as well as on earth, has always made beautiful things happen! It is with affection and admiration that this website is dedicated to her.
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