Winston Sharples
Encyclopedia
Winston Singleton Sharples (March 1, 1909 - April 3, 1978) was a composer
known for his work with animated short subjects, especially those created by the animation department at Paramount Pictures
. In his thirty-five-year career Sharples scored more than 700 cartoons for Paramount and Famous Studios
, and composed music for two Frank Buck
films, Wild Cargo (1934) and Fang and Claw
(1935).
from Harvard University
, an M.F.A.
in drama from the Carnegie Institute of Technology
and continued studies at the Yale University
Graduate School of Drama.
. He relocated to New York City in 1932, where he played piano and occasionally bass with Vincent Lopez
's orchestra.
in scoring cartoons for the Van Beuren Studios
in 1932 after Walter Winchell
praised his work with Lopez in a column, which was read by studio owner Amadee Van Beuren
. Sharples stayed at Van Beuren until 1936, during which time he composed music for two Frank Buck
films, Wild Cargo (1934) and Fang and Claw
(1935). In 1938, Sharples composed the music for the Max Fleischer
full-length animated production of Gulliver's Travels
Several of the songs from that production were used throughout subsequent years in Paramount shorts, with the most notable being "It's A Hap-Hap-Happy Day." He joined ASCAP in 1948. In 1958, Sharples teamed with Joe Oriolo
for musical production on the Felix the Cat television series
. That series made extensive use of stock music composed for the Paramount shorts as well as Sharples' distinctive theme song.
In the late 1950's, Sharples and animation producer Hal Seeger
formed a partnership called Scroll Productions that repackaged Sharples' scores from the Paramount cartoons into a stock music library, much like the Capitol Records
Hi-Q
library. Most of the cues were from late 50's productions, but some dated as far back as the 1952 Popeye
cartoon Big Bad Sindbad. Besides the aforementioned Felix the Cat, productions using this stock music included the King Features Syndicate
TV cartoons (Popeye, Barney Google
, and Beetle Bailey
), King Leonardo, and Tennessee Tuxedo. Later Sharples cues were recycled into episodes of Seeger's Batfink
. Sharples also composed the theme song for Seeger's Milton the Monster
television series in 1965, in addition to using the stock music package for part of the underscore.
Sharples continued at the Paramount cartoon studio, successfully adapting his style to smaller groups and even incorporating jazz and rock and roll styles for the edgier works of Ralph Bakshi
, until it closed in 1967.
Among other better-known compositions were Puppets; When You Left Me and What Has She Got That I Haven't Got.
.
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
known for his work with animated short subjects, especially those created by the animation department at 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...
. In his thirty-five-year career Sharples scored more than 700 cartoons for Paramount and Famous Studios
Famous Studios
Famous Studios was the animation division of the film studio Paramount Pictures from 1942 to 1967. Famous was founded as a successor company to Fleischer Studios, after Paramount acquired the aforementioned studio and ousted its founders, Max and Dave Fleischer, in 1941...
, and composed music for two Frank Buck
Frank Buck (animal collector)
Frank Howard Buck was a hunter and "collector of wild animals," as well as a movie actor, director, writer and producer...
films, Wild Cargo (1934) and Fang and Claw
Fang and Claw (1935 film)
Fang and Claw was a 1935 jungle adventure documentary starring Frank Buck. Buck continues his demonstration of the ingenious methods by which he traps wild birds, mammals and reptiles in Johore.-Scenes:Among the scenes in the film:...
(1935).
Early years
Sharples was born in Fall River, Massachusetts to William, a machinist, and Mary Sharples, and was playing piano in vaudeville at the age of 8. Sharples was well educated, with a B.A.Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, an M.F.A.
Master of Fine Arts
A Master of Fine Arts is a graduate degree typically requiring 2–3 years of postgraduate study beyond the bachelor's degree , although the term of study will vary by country or by university. The MFA is usually awarded in visual arts, creative writing, filmmaking, dance, or theatre/performing arts...
in drama from the Carnegie Institute of Technology
Carnegie Institute of Technology
The Carnegie Institute of Technology , is the name for Carnegie Mellon University’s College of Engineering. It was first called the Carnegie Technical Schools, or Carnegie Tech, when it was founded in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie who intended to build a “first class technical school” in Pittsburgh,...
and continued studies at the Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
Graduate School of Drama.
Performer
Sharples appeared on radio for two years starting in 1930 through 1932, playing the piano on a 15-minute morning program at various stations in ConnecticutConnecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
. He relocated to New York City in 1932, where he played piano and occasionally bass with Vincent Lopez
Vincent Lopez
Vincent Lopez was an American bandleader and pianist.Vincent Lopez was born of Portuguese immigrant parents in Brooklyn, New York and was leading his own dance band in New York City by 1917...
's orchestra.
Film Music Composer
Sharples replaced the late Gene RodemichGene Rodemich
Eugene Frederick Rodemich was a pianist and orchestra leader, who composed the music for Frank Buck’s first movie, Bring 'Em Back Alive .-Early life:...
in scoring cartoons for the Van Beuren Studios
Van Beuren Studios
Van Beuren Studios was an American animation studio that produced theatrical cartoons from 1928 to 1936.Producer Amedee J. van Beuren first became involved in the animation industry in 1920, when he formed a partnership with Paul Terry and formed the "Aesop's Fables Studio" for the production of...
in 1932 after Walter Winchell
Walter Winchell
Walter Winchell was an American newspaper and radio gossip commentator.-Professional career:Born Walter Weinschel in New York City, he left school in the sixth grade and started performing in a vaudeville troupe known as Gus Edwards' "Newsboys Sextet."His career in journalism was begun by posting...
praised his work with Lopez in a column, which was read by studio owner Amadee Van Beuren
Van Beuren Studios
Van Beuren Studios was an American animation studio that produced theatrical cartoons from 1928 to 1936.Producer Amedee J. van Beuren first became involved in the animation industry in 1920, when he formed a partnership with Paul Terry and formed the "Aesop's Fables Studio" for the production of...
. Sharples stayed at Van Beuren until 1936, during which time he composed music for two Frank Buck
Frank Buck (animal collector)
Frank Howard Buck was a hunter and "collector of wild animals," as well as a movie actor, director, writer and producer...
films, Wild Cargo (1934) and Fang and Claw
Fang and Claw (1935 film)
Fang and Claw was a 1935 jungle adventure documentary starring Frank Buck. Buck continues his demonstration of the ingenious methods by which he traps wild birds, mammals and reptiles in Johore.-Scenes:Among the scenes in the film:...
(1935). In 1938, Sharples composed the music for the Max Fleischer
Max Fleischer
Max Fleischer was an American animator. He was a pioneer in the development of the animated cartoon and served as the head of Fleischer Studios...
full-length animated production of Gulliver's Travels
Gulliver's Travels (1939 film)
Gulliver's Travels is a 1939 American cel-animated Technicolor feature film, directed by Dave Fleischer and produced by Max Fleischer for Fleischer Studios. The film was released on Friday, December 22, 1939 by Paramount Pictures, who had the feature produced as an answer to the success of Walt...
Several of the songs from that production were used throughout subsequent years in Paramount shorts, with the most notable being "It's A Hap-Hap-Happy Day." He joined ASCAP in 1948. In 1958, Sharples teamed with Joe Oriolo
Joe Oriolo
Joseph "Joe" Oriolo was an American cartoon animator, writer, director and producer, known as the creator of the Felix the Cat TV series.-Early life:...
for musical production on the Felix the Cat television series
Felix the Cat (TV series)
Felix the Cat was the first television series featuring the famous cartoon character Felix the Cat.In 1954 Otto Messmer retired from the Felix daily newspaper strips, and his assistant Joe Oriolo took over. Oriolo struck a deal with Felix's new owner to begin a new series of Felix cartoons on...
. That series made extensive use of stock music composed for the Paramount shorts as well as Sharples' distinctive theme song.
In the late 1950's, Sharples and animation producer Hal Seeger
Hal Seeger
Harold "Hal" Seeger was an animated cartoon producer and director who owned his own studio the Hal Seeger Studio ....
formed a partnership called Scroll Productions that repackaged Sharples' scores from the Paramount cartoons into a stock music library, much like the Capitol Records
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
Hi-Q
Hi-Q
Hi-Q or HiQ has several meanings:*Hi-Q is a game that involves jumping pegs over one another in a cruciform grid*HiQ is a differential analyzer application currently sold by National Instruments...
library. Most of the cues were from late 50's productions, but some dated as far back as the 1952 Popeye
Popeye
Popeye the Sailor is a cartoon fictional character created by Elzie Crisler Segar, who has appeared in comic strips and animated cartoons in the cinema as well as on television. He first appeared in the daily King Features comic strip Thimble Theatre on January 17, 1929...
cartoon Big Bad Sindbad. Besides the aforementioned Felix the Cat, productions using this stock music included the King Features Syndicate
King Features Syndicate
King Features Syndicate, a print syndication company owned by The Hearst Corporation, distributes about 150 comic strips, newspaper columns, editorial cartoons, puzzles and games to nearly 5000 newspapers worldwide...
TV cartoons (Popeye, Barney Google
Barney Google
Barney Google and Snuffy Smith, originally Barney Google, is a long-running American comic strip created by cartoonist Billy DeBeck . Since its debut on June 17, 1919, the strip has gained a huge international readership, appearing in 900 newspapers in 21 countries...
, and Beetle Bailey
Beetle Bailey
Beetle Bailey is an American comic strip set in a fictional United States Army military post, created by cartoonist Mort Walker. It is among the oldest comic strips still being produced by the original creator...
), King Leonardo, and Tennessee Tuxedo. Later Sharples cues were recycled into episodes of Seeger's Batfink
Batfink
Batfink is an animated television series, consisting of five-minute shorts, that first aired in September 1967. The 100-episode series was quickly created by Hal Seeger, starting in 1966, to parody the popular Batman and The Green Hornet television series which had premiered the same...
. Sharples also composed the theme song for Seeger's Milton the Monster
Milton the Monster
Milton the Monster, also called The Milton the Monster Show was an American animated cartoon TV series that ran on ABC from October 9, 1965, to September 7, 1968...
television series in 1965, in addition to using the stock music package for part of the underscore.
Sharples continued at the Paramount cartoon studio, successfully adapting his style to smaller groups and even incorporating jazz and rock and roll styles for the edgier works of Ralph Bakshi
Ralph Bakshi
Ralph Bakshi is an Israeli-American director of animated and live-action films. In the 1970s, he established an alternative to mainstream animation through independent and adult-oriented productions. Between 1972 and 1992, he directed nine theatrically released feature films, five of which he wrote...
, until it closed in 1967.
Among other better-known compositions were Puppets; When You Left Me and What Has She Got That I Haven't Got.
Personal Life
Sharples married Daisy Shockley in 1931 and had a son, Winston Sharples Jr., who worked with his father as a music editor and eventually became a musical director himself on The Mighty HerculesThe Mighty Hercules
The Mighty Hercules was an animated series based loosely on the Greek mythological character of Heracles, under his Roman Mythology name, Hercules. It was created in 1962 and then debuted on TV in 1963 and ran until 1966 coinciding with the sword and sandal genre of films popular at the...
.