Herbert Stothart

Full biography Herbert Stothart

Herbert Stothart was an American composer, arranger, conductor, and songwriter who lived from 1880 to 1949. He was known for his work in the musical theatre and in the film industry. Stothart was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and began writing stage revues while studying at the University of Wisconsin. In the 1920s, he wrote for New York Broadway productions and by the end of the decade , he had moved to Hollywood to work in the film industry.

Stothart had a long and successful career as a composer for MGM Pictures, for whom he worked as an in-house composer. He was known for his background scores and for his ability to capture the essence of a particular scene or emotion in his music. He worked on numerous films for MGM during their heyday, including the iconic films The Wizard of Oz, Mutiny on the Bounty, and San Francisco.

Stothart was nominated for twelve Academy Awards in his career, winning three of them, all for his work on films produced by MGM. In addition to his film work, Stothart also composed music for vaudeville and other stage productions, and he was highly regarded in the music industry for his versatile and expressive compositions.

Today, Stothart is remembered as one of the most influential film composers of his time, and his music continues to be celebrated and studied by scholars and music lovers around the world.