Herbert Stothart facts for kids

Herbert Pope Stothart (born September 11, 1885 – died February 1, 1949) was a talented American composer, songwriter, arranger, and conductor. He was nominated for twelve Academy Awards, which are like the Oscars for movies. He won an Oscar for the Best Original Score for the famous movie The Wizard of Oz. Stothart was known as one of the best composers in Hollywood during the 1930s and 1940s.

Early Life and Music Career

Herbert Stothart was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He loved music from a young age. He studied music in Europe and at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He even taught music there for a while.

Stothart first worked for a producer named Arthur Hammerstein. He was a musical director for Broadway shows that traveled around. Soon, he started writing music for Oscar Hammerstein II, who was the producer's nephew. Stothart wrote music for the famous musical play Rose-Marie. He also worked with other well-known composers. These included Vincent Youmans, George Gershwin, and Franz Lehár.

Stothart had many popular songs. Some of his hits were "Cute Little Two by Four," "Wildflower," and "The Mounties." He also wrote "I Wanna Be Loved by You" and "The Donkey Serenade." These songs were very popular on the music charts.

Moving to Hollywood and MGM

In 1929, movies changed a lot. This was when silent films ended. Movies started to have sound and music. After finishing a musical called Golden Dawn, Stothart got a big invitation. Louis B. Mayer, a powerful movie boss, asked him to move to Hollywood. Stothart accepted this exciting offer.

In 1929, Stothart signed a major contract with MGM. MGM was one of the biggest movie studios. He spent the next twenty years of his life working there. He was part of a special group of top composers in Hollywood.

Famous Film Scores and Awards

Herbert Stothart worked on many famous films at MGM. He helped create the music for the 1936 movie Rose-Marie. This film starred popular actors Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy. He also conducted and wrote music for movies like The Cuban Love Song and The Good Earth.

His work included scores for classic films such as Romeo and Juliet and Mutiny on the Bounty. He also composed for Mrs. Miniver and The Picture of Dorian Gray. Stothart's music was also in the Marx Brothers' comedy Night at the Opera. He worked on Anna Karenina, based on a famous book. He also scored two movies based on Charles Dickens' novels. These were A Tale of Two Cities and David Copperfield.

Stothart earned his first Academy Award nomination for Mutiny on the Bounty. He later won an Oscar for his amazing music in the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz. This is one of his most famous achievements.

Later Life and Legacy

Herbert Stothart spent his entire Hollywood career at MGM. In 1947, he was visiting Scotland when he had a heart attack. After this, he wrote an orchestral piece called Heart Attack: A Symphonic Poem. This music was inspired by his own experience. He also worked on another piece called Voices of Liberation.

Stothart passed away two years later, in 1949, at the age of 63. He is remembered as a very important composer in Hollywood history.

Academy Award Nominations

Herbert Stothart received 12 Academy Award nominations during his career. He won the Academy Award for Best Original Score for The Wizard of Oz.

• 1939 Best Original Score Film – The Wizard of Oz (Winner)
• 1935 Best Scoring Film – Mutiny on the Bounty
• 1937 Best Scoring Film – Maytime
• 1938 Best Original Score Film – Marie Antoinette
• 1938 Best Scoring Film – Sweethearts
• 1940 Best Original Score Film – Waterloo Bridge
• 1941 Best Music, Scoring a Musical Picture – The Chocolate Soldier
• 1942 Best Music, Scoring a Dramatic or Comedy Film – Random Harvest
• 1943 Best Music, Scoring a Musical Picture – Thousands Cheer
• 1943 Best Music, Scoring a Dramatic or Comedy Film – Madame Curie
• 1944 Best Music, Scoring a Dramatic or Comedy Film – Kismet
• 1945 Best Music, Scoring a Dramatic or Comedy Film – The Valley of Decision

Movie Scores by Herbert Stothart

Here are some of the movies Herbert Stothart composed music for:

• Devil-May-Care (1929)
• Rasputin and the Empress (1932)
• Queen Christina (1933)
• The Barretts of Wimpole Street (1934)
• What Every Woman Knows (1934)
• Anna Karenina (1935)
• China Seas (1935)
• David Copperfield (1935 version)
• Mutiny on the Bounty (1935)
• Naughty Marietta (1935)
• A Night at the Opera (1935)
• A Tale of Two Cities (1935)
• After the Thin Man (1936)
• The Good Earth (1937)
• Marie Antoinette (1938)
• Idiot's Delight (1939)
• The Wizard of Oz (1939)
• Northwest Passage (1940)
• Pride and Prejudice (1940 version)
• Come Live With Me (1941)
• Blossoms in the Dust (1941)
• Mrs. Miniver (1942)
• I Married An Angel (1942)
• Random Harvest (1942)
• The Human Comedy (1943)
• Madame Curie (1943)
• National Velvet (1944)
• Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo (1944)
• Dragon Seed (1944)
• The White Cliffs of Dover (1944)
• The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945)
• They Were Expendable (1945)
• The Green Years (1946)
• The Yearling (1946)
• The Sea of Grass (1947)