Basil Poledouris

Basil Konstantine Poledouris August 21 1945 – November 8 2006 Was A Greek-American Composer Conductor And Orchestrator Of Film And Television Scores Best Known For His Long-Running Collaborations With Directors John Milius And Paul Verhoeven. Among His Works Are Scores For The Films Conan The Barbarian 1982 Red Dawn 1984 Iron Eagle 1986 RoboCop 1987 The Hunt For Red October 1990 Free Willy 1993 And Starship Troopers 1997 . Poledouris Won The Primetime Emmy Award For Outstanding Music Composition For A Limited Series Movie Or Special For His Work On The Four-Part Miniseries Lonesome Dove In 1989 And Was A Four-Time Recipient Of The BMI Film Music Award. Born In Kansas City Missouri He Credited Two Influences With Guiding Him Towards Music The First Was Composer Miklós Rózsa The Second His Own Greek Orthodox Heritage. Poledouris Was Raised In The Church And He Used To Sit In Services Enthralled By The Choir's Sound. At The Age Of Seven Poledouris Began Piano Lessons And After Graduation From Garden Grove High School He Enrolled At The University Of Southern California To Study Both Filmmaking And Music. Several Short Films To Which He Contributed Are Still Kept In The University's Archives. At USC Poledouris Met Movie Directors John Milius And Randal Kleiser With Whom He Would Later Collaborate As A Music Composer. He Appeared As A Background Extra In Several Episodes Of Star Trek The Original Series. In 1985 Poledouris Wrote The Music For Paul Verhoeven's Flesh & Blood Establishing A Durable Collaboration. Poledouris Became Renowned For His Powerfully Epic Style Of Orchestral Composition And His Intricate Thematic Designs. He Scored The Soundtrack For The Blue Lagoon 1980 Dir Kleiser Conan The Barbarian 1982 Dir Milius Conan The Destroyer 1984 Red Dawn 1984 Dir Milius Iron Eagle 1986 RoboCop 1987 Dir Verhoeven The Hunt For Red October 1990 Quigley Down Under 1990 Simon Wincer Free Willy 1993 And Its First Sequel Free Willy 2 The Adventure Home 1995 Starship Troopers 1997 Dir Verhoeven And For Love Of The Game 1999 . Poledouris' Studio "Blowtorch Flats" Was Located In Venice California And Was A Professional Mixing Facility Specializing In Film And Media Production. Poledouris Married His Wife Bobbie In 1969 They Had Two Daughters Zoë And Alexis. His Elder Daughter Zoë Poledouris Is An Actress And Film Composer Who Occasionally Collaborated With Her Father In Composing Film Soundtracks. In 1996 Poledouris Alongside James Horner Composed "The Tradition Of The Games" For The Atlanta Olympics Opening Ceremony That Accompanied The Memorable Dance Tribute To The Athletes And Goddesses Of Victory Of The Ancient Greek Olympics Using Silhouette Imagery. Poledouris Spent The Last Four Years Of His Life Residing On Vashon Island In Washington State. He Died On November 8 2006 In Los Angeles California Aged 61 From Cancer. read less