Frank Skinner (composer)
Encyclopedia
Frank Skinner was an American composer and arranger.
Skinner was born in Meredosia, Illinois
. A graduate of the Chicago Musical College (now known as the Chicago Conservatory of Music), 16-year-old Frank found employment in vaudeville and began playing in local areas with his brother Carl on drums. They were billed as the Skinner Brothers dance band. From there they began playing on the steamboats that went up and down the Illinois river. It was during this time that he began writing and arranging music for dance bands. This work brought him to New York, where from 1925 to 1935 he arranged about 2000 popular songs for Robbins Publishing. By the time he left Manhattan for Hollywood, he had written two books on arranging for dance bands.
After a short period at MGM, working on musical settings for The Great Ziegfeld (1936), Skinner was hired by Universal Studios. Over the course of his 30 years there, he composed music for more than 200 films. Although he continued to work on musicals, he quickly mastered the art of dramatic scores, eventually earning five Academy Award nominations (1938–43). He died in Beverly Hills, California
.
His distinctive approach to scoring horror films, such as Son of Frankenstein (1939) and The Wolf Man (1941), has been characterized as a ‘passion for chromatic lines … mirrored contours … [and] restrained, yet ominously mythical orchestrations’ (Marcello). He gained new recognition in the 1950s for his lush romantic scores, including Magnificent Obsession (1954) and Written on the Wind (1956). Despite many changes in the film industry, his book Underscore (1950) has survived as an excellent introduction to film music composition.
Skinner was born in Meredosia, Illinois
Meredosia, Illinois
Meredosia is a village in Morgan County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,041 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Jacksonville Micropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Meredosia is located at ....
. A graduate of the Chicago Musical College (now known as the Chicago Conservatory of Music), 16-year-old Frank found employment in vaudeville and began playing in local areas with his brother Carl on drums. They were billed as the Skinner Brothers dance band. From there they began playing on the steamboats that went up and down the Illinois river. It was during this time that he began writing and arranging music for dance bands. This work brought him to New York, where from 1925 to 1935 he arranged about 2000 popular songs for Robbins Publishing. By the time he left Manhattan for Hollywood, he had written two books on arranging for dance bands.
After a short period at MGM, working on musical settings for The Great Ziegfeld (1936), Skinner was hired by Universal Studios. Over the course of his 30 years there, he composed music for more than 200 films. Although he continued to work on musicals, he quickly mastered the art of dramatic scores, eventually earning five Academy Award nominations (1938–43). He died in Beverly Hills, California
Beverly Hills, California
Beverly Hills is an affluent city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. With a population of 34,109 at the 2010 census, up from 33,784 as of the 2000 census, it is home to numerous Hollywood celebrities. Beverly Hills and the neighboring city of West Hollywood are together...
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His distinctive approach to scoring horror films, such as Son of Frankenstein (1939) and The Wolf Man (1941), has been characterized as a ‘passion for chromatic lines … mirrored contours … [and] restrained, yet ominously mythical orchestrations’ (Marcello). He gained new recognition in the 1950s for his lush romantic scores, including Magnificent Obsession (1954) and Written on the Wind (1956). Despite many changes in the film industry, his book Underscore (1950) has survived as an excellent introduction to film music composition.
Selected filmography
- Son of FrankensteinSon of FrankensteinSon of Frankenstein is the third film in Universal Studios' Frankenstein series and the last to feature Boris Karloff as the Monster as well as the first to feature Béla Lugosi as Ygor. It is a sequel to Bride of Frankenstein....
(1939) - The Rage of ParisThe Rage of ParisThe Rage of Paris is a 1938 comedy film made by Universal Pictures. The movie was directed by Henry Koster, and written by Bruce Manning and Felix Jackson. It won the Venice Film Festival for Special Recommendation.-Cast:...
(1938) - Destry Rides AgainDestry Rides AgainDestry Rides Again is a western starring Marlene Dietrich and James Stewart. The supporting cast includes Mischa Auer, Charles Winninger, Brian Donlevy, Allen Jenkins, Irene Hervey, Billy Gilbert, Bill Cody, Jr., and Una Merkel. The original Max Brand novel was translated into an "oater" with the...
(1939) - The Invisible Man ReturnsThe Invisible Man ReturnsThe Invisible Man Returns is a 1940 horror science fiction film from Universal. It was written as a sequel to the 1933 film The Invisible Man, which was based on the novel The Invisible Man by H. G. Wells. The studio had signed a multi-picture contract with Wells, and they were hoping that this...
(1940) - My Little ChickadeeMy Little ChickadeeMy Little Chickadee is a Universal comedy/western motion picture starring Mae West and W. C. Fields, with Joseph Calleia, Ruth Donnelly, Margaret Hamilton, Donald Meek, Willard Robertson, Dick Foran, George Moran, William B. Davidson, and Addison Richards. It was directed by Edward F. Cline...
(1940) - Back StreetBack Street (1941 film)Back Street is a 1941 drama film made by Universal Pictures, directed by Robert Stevenson. The film stars Charles Boyer and Margaret Sullavan. It is a remake of the 1932 film of the same name, also from Universal. The film follows the 1931 Fannie Hurst novel and the 1932 film version very closely,...
(1941) - The Wolf Man (1941, with Hans J. SalterHans J. SalterHans J. Salter was an American film composer.Hans J. Salter gained his education from the Vienna Academy Of Music, and studied composition with Alban Berg, Franz Schreker, and others. He was Music Director of the State Opera in Berlin before being hired to compose music at UFA studios...
, uncredited) - HellzapoppinHellzapoppin' (film)Hellzapoppin' is a 1941 Universal Pictures adaptation of the musical of the same name directed by H.C. Potter. The cast includes Ole Olsen and Chic Johnson , Martha Raye, Mischa Auer, Shemp Howard, and The Six Hits.The credits for the movie assert that "any resemblance between Hellzapoppin and a...
(1941) - Badlands of Dakota (1941)
- SaboteurSaboteur (film)Saboteur is a 1942 Universal film directed by Alfred Hitchcock with a screenplay written by Peter Viertel, Joan Harrison, and Dorothy Parker. The movie stars Priscilla Lane, Robert Cummings, and Norman Lloyd...
(1942) - Sherlock Holmes and the Voice of TerrorSherlock Holmes and the Voice of TerrorSherlock Holmes and the Voice of Terror is the third film in the Basil Rathbone/Nigel Bruce series of Sherlock Holmes movies. Made in 1942, the film combines elements of the Arthur Conan Doyle story "His Last Bow" and loosely parallels the real-life activities of Lord Haw-haw...
(1942) - Two Tickets to LondonTwo Tickets to LondonTwo Tickets to London is a 1943 drama film made by Universal Pictures, and directed by Edwin L. Marin. The screenplay was written by Tom Reed, based on story by Roy William Neill. The film stars Michèle Morgan and Alan Curtis.A U.S...
(1943) - Sherlock Holmes in WashingtonSherlock Holmes in WashingtonSherlock Holmes in Washington is the fifth film in the Basil Rathbone/Nigel Bruce series of Sherlock Holmes movies.- Plot :A British agent carrying a vital document is murdered on his way to deliver it in the USA...
(1943) - Abbott and Costello Meet FrankensteinAbbott and Costello Meet FrankensteinAbbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein is a 1948 American comedy horror film directed by Charles Barton and starring the comedy team of Abbott and Costello. It is the first of several films where the comedy duo meets classic characters from Universal's horror film stable...
(1948) - HarveyHarvey (film)Harvey is a 1950 film based on Mary Chase's play of the same name, directed by Henry Koster, and starring James Stewart and Josephine Hull. The story is about a man whose best friend is a pooka named Harvey—in the form of a six-foot, three-and-one-half-inch tall invisible rabbit.-Plot:Elwood P...
(1950) - The Raging TideThe Raging TideThe Raging Tide is an American crime film noir directed by George Sherman and written by Ernest K. Gann, based on his novel Fiddler's Green. The drama features Shelley Winters, Richard Conte, among others.-Plot:...
(1951) - Magnificent ObsessionMagnificent Obsession (1954 film)Magnificent Obsession is a Universal International Pictures romantic feature film directed by Douglas Sirk; starring Jane Wyman and Rock Hudson. The screenplay was written by Robert Blees and Wells Root, after the book Magnificent Obsession by Lloyd C. Douglas. The film was produced by Ross Hunter...
(1954) - All That Heaven AllowsAll That Heaven AllowsAll That Heaven Allows is a romance feature film starring Jane Wyman and Rock Hudson in a tale about a well-to-do widow and a younger landscape designer falling in love. The screenplay was written by Peg Fenwick based upon a story by Edna L. Lee and Harry Lee...
(1955) - Written on the WindWritten on the WindWritten on the Wind is a 1956 American drama film directed by Douglas Sirk. It stars Rock Hudson, Lauren Bacall, Robert Stack and Dorothy Malone....
(1956) - Interlude (1957)
- Tammy and the BachelorTammy and the BachelorTammy and the Bachelor is a 1957 romantic comedy film and is the first of the four Tammy films. It stars Debbie Reynolds as Tambrey "Tammy" Tyree, Walter Brennan as Grandpa Dinwitty and Leslie Nielsen as Peter Brent...
(1957) - Man of a Thousand FacesMan of a Thousand FacesMan of a Thousand Faces is a film detailing the life of silent movie actor Lon Chaney, in which the title role is played by James Cagney.Directed by Joseph Pevney, the film's cast included Dorothy Malone, Jane Greer and Jim Backus...
(1957) - The Tarnished AngelsThe Tarnished AngelsThe Tarnished Angels is a 1958 American drama film directed by Douglas Sirk. The screenplay by George Zuckerman is based on the 1935 novel Pylon by William Faulkner.-Plot:...
(1958) - Imitation of LifeImitation of Life (1959 film)Imitation of Life is a 1959 American film directed by Douglas Sirk, produced by Ross Hunter and released by Universal Pictures, starring Lana Turner and John Gavin and features Sandra Dee, Dan O'Herlihy, Susan Kohner, Robert Alda and Juanita Moore as Annie Johnson. Gospel music star Mahalia Jackson...
(1959) - Back StreetBack Street (1961 film)Back Street is a 1961 film made by Universal Pictures, directed by David Miller, and produced by Ross Hunter. The screenplay was written by William Ludwig and Eleanore Griffin based on the novel by Fannie Hurst. The music score is by Frank Skinner...
(1961) - Captain Newman, M.D.Captain Newman, M.D.Captain Newman, M.D. is a 1963 film starring Gregory Peck, Tony Curtis, Angie Dickinson, Robert Duvall, Eddie Albert and Bobby Darin. It was directed by David Miller and filmed on location at Fort Huachuca, Arizona....
(1963) - ShenandoahShenandoah (film)Shenandoah is a 1965 American Civil War film starring James Stewart, Doug McClure, Glenn Corbett, Patrick Wayne, and Katharine Ross. The picture was directed by Andrew V. McLaglen. Though set during the American Civil War, the film's strong antiwar and humanitarian themes resonated with audiences...
(1965) - Madame XMadame X (1966 film)Madame X is a 1966 drama film directed by David Lowell Rich and starring Lana Turner.-Plot:A lower class woman, Holly Parker , marries into the rich Anderson family. Her husband's mother looks down on her and keeps a watchful eye on her activities...
(1966)