Clarence Wheeler
Encyclopedia
Clarence E. Wheeler was an American
musician and composer. He created the music for many of Woody Woodpecker
series cartoons under Walter Lantz Productions along with films in the 1940s.
Wheeler was born in Walnut, Kansas. He formed an orchestra which appeared on the radio in Chicago in the 1930s, playing on The Terminix All-Star Program in May 1933 on WBBM
. He was music director of the station from 1935 to 1938 and was replaced by Caesar Petrillo, brother of future American Federation of Musicians
boss James Petrillo
. He arrived in Hollywood that year and began writing music published by Alberto Colombo. Among his compositions were Cinemaland Parade, Silhouette in Rhythm, Sing For Our Fallen Brave., There Must Be a Way, Hey There, Mr. Labor, That Night in Donegal, Tiny Little Big Shot, Hello Broadway, London Calling, the last four with James J. May.
He soon went into scoring short films. His first credit was in the 1941 Columbia Pictures
release Broken Treaties, directed by former Warner Bros. animator Paul Fennell, where radio commentator Raymond Gram Swing
reviewed the history of the invasion of Poland. He was hired in 1944 by George Pal
to provide the scores for his Puppetoons
and live-action shorts such as This is Oil (1949), released by Paramount Pictures
. Wheeler also worked on features, providing orchestrations for the all-star extravaganza Tales of Manhattan
(1942) and a number of the Blondie
movies released by Columbia in the 1940s.
Wheeler also scored for early television programs, being hired by Jerry Fairbanks
to write music for the series Public Prosecutor in 1948. Some of Wheeler's film music was recompiled as stock music and leased to television producers, for airing on programs such as Topper
, The Untouchables
, Wyatt Earp
and Gumby
.
His first animated cartoon score was The 3 Minnies: Sota, Tonka and Ha-Ha! (1949), distributed by Republic Pictures
. When Walter Lantz re-opened his studio in 1950 he hired Wheeler to score all his cartoons, almost 140 in total, beginning with Puny Express
through The Nautical Nut, which was released in 1970 after Wheeler's death.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
musician and composer. He created the music for many of Woody Woodpecker
Woody Woodpecker
Woody Woodpecker is an animated cartoon character, an anthropomorphic acorn woodpecker who appeared in theatrical short films produced by the Walter Lantz animation studio and distributed by Universal Pictures...
series cartoons under Walter Lantz Productions along with films in the 1940s.
Wheeler was born in Walnut, Kansas. He formed an orchestra which appeared on the radio in Chicago in the 1930s, playing on The Terminix All-Star Program in May 1933 on WBBM
WBBM
WBBM may refer to any of four stations in the Chicago, Illinois area owned and operated by CBS:*WBBM-TV, a television station licensed to Chicago and affiliated with the CBS Television Network...
. He was music director of the station from 1935 to 1938 and was replaced by Caesar Petrillo, brother of future American Federation of Musicians
American Federation of Musicians
The American Federation of Musicians of the United States and Canada is a labor union of professional musicians in the United States and Canada...
boss James Petrillo
James Petrillo
James Caesar Petrillo was the prominent leader of the American Federation of Musicians, a trade union of professional musicians in the United States and Canada.-Biography:Petrillo was born in Chicago, Illinois...
. He arrived in Hollywood that year and began writing music published by Alberto Colombo. Among his compositions were Cinemaland Parade, Silhouette in Rhythm, Sing For Our Fallen Brave., There Must Be a Way, Hey There, Mr. Labor, That Night in Donegal, Tiny Little Big Shot, Hello Broadway, London Calling, the last four with James J. May.
He soon went into scoring short films. His first credit was in the 1941 Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production and distribution company. Columbia Pictures now forms part of the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. It is one of the leading film companies...
release Broken Treaties, directed by former Warner Bros. animator Paul Fennell, where radio commentator Raymond Gram Swing
Raymond Gram Swing
Raymond Gram Swing was an American print and broadcast journalist. He was one of the most influential news commentators of his era, heard by people worldwide as a leading American voice from Britain during World War II...
reviewed the history of the invasion of Poland. He was hired in 1944 by George Pal
George Pál
George Pal , born György Pál Marczincsak, was a Hungarian-born American animator and film producer, principally associated with the science fiction genre...
to provide the scores for his Puppetoons
Puppetoons
George Pal's Puppetoons were a series of animated puppet films made in Europe in the 1930s and in the U.S. in the 1940s. They are memorable for their use of "replacement" animation: using a series of different hand-carved wooden puppets for each frame in which the puppet moves or changes...
and live-action shorts such as This is Oil (1949), released by Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
. Wheeler also worked on features, providing orchestrations for the all-star extravaganza Tales of Manhattan
Tales of Manhattan
Tales of Manhattan is a 1942 American anthology film directed by Julien Duvivier. Thirteen writers, including Ben Hecht, Alan Campbell, Ferenc Molnár, Samuel Hoffenstein, and Donald Ogden Stewart worked on the six stories in this film.-Cast:...
(1942) and a number of the Blondie
Blondie (film)
Blondie is a 1938 movie directed by Frank Strayer, based on the comic strip of the same name. The screenplay was written by Chic Young and Richard Flournoy....
movies released by Columbia in the 1940s.
Wheeler also scored for early television programs, being hired by Jerry Fairbanks
Jerry Fairbanks
Gerald Bertram "Jerry" Fairbanks was a producer and director in the Hollywood motion picture and television industry....
to write music for the series Public Prosecutor in 1948. Some of Wheeler's film music was recompiled as stock music and leased to television producers, for airing on programs such as Topper
Topper (TV series)
Topper is an American fantasy sitcom based on the 1937 film of the same name. The series was broadcast on CBS from October 9, 1953 to July 15, 1955, and stars Leo G. Carroll in the title role.-Synopsis:...
, The Untouchables
The Untouchables (1959 TV series)
The Untouchables is an American crime drama that ran from 1959 to 1963 on ABC. Based on the memoir of the same name by Eliot Ness and Oscar Fraley, it fictionalized the experiences of Eliot Ness, a real-life Prohibition agent, as he fought crime in Chicago during the 1930s with the help of a...
, Wyatt Earp
The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp
The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp is a Western television series loosely based on the adventures of frontier marshal Wyatt Earp. The half-hour black and white series ran on ABC-TV from 1955 to 1961 and featured Hugh O'Brian as Earp. An off-camera barbershop quartet sang the theme song and hummed...
and Gumby
Gumby
Gumby is a green clay humanoid character created and modeled by Art Clokey, who also created Davey and Goliath. Gumby has been the subject of a 233-episode series of American television as well as a feature-length film and other media...
.
His first animated cartoon score was The 3 Minnies: Sota, Tonka and Ha-Ha! (1949), distributed by Republic Pictures
Republic Pictures
Republic Pictures was an independent film production-distribution corporation with studio facilities, operating from 1934 through 1959, and was best known for specializing in westerns, movie serials and B films emphasizing mystery and action....
. When Walter Lantz re-opened his studio in 1950 he hired Wheeler to score all his cartoons, almost 140 in total, beginning with Puny Express
Puny Express
Puny Express is an American cartoon, and the 32nd animated cartoon short subject in the Woody Woodpecker series. Released theatrically on January 22, 1951, the film was produced by Walter Lantz Productions and distributed by Universal International....
through The Nautical Nut, which was released in 1970 after Wheeler's death.