Neal Hefti, composer of ‘Batman’ theme, dies
LOS ANGELES (AP) รณ Neal Hefti, a Big Band trumpeter, arranger and composer of themes for the movie The Odd Couple and the Batman television series, has died. He was 85.
Hefti died unexpectedly Saturday at his home, said his son Paul Hefti. He said his father was in good health and may have suffered a heart attack or stroke.
Neal Hefti’s notable achievements include the iconic theme of the 1960s superhero series Batman, which became a Top 40 hit and won a Grammy Award in 1966 for best instrumental theme. He also composed music for The Odd Couple,Barefoot in the Park and Harlow, which featured his classic track Girl Talk.
His son said the Batman theme was Neal Hefti’s most difficult piece, taking him at least one month to compose the driving bass and explosive trumpet bursts.
“He threw away more music paper on this thing than any other song,” Paul Hefti told The Associated Press. “It got down to the blues with a funny guitar hook, the lowest common denominator and a fun groove.”
As a working composer, Hefti’s inspiration was “the job offer and the deadline,” said Paul Hefti. “He didn’t write songs in between jobs and when he retired he never wrote another song.”
“He was one of the really great arrangers and composers of all time,” radio and television personality Gary Owens, a longtime friend, told the Los Angeles Times.
Neal Hefti was born Oct. 29, 1922, in Hastings, Neb., and played trumpet with local bands as a teenager to earn money.
As an adult, he worked with and arranged music for the greats of the Big Band era, including Count Basie, Woody Herman, Charlie Spivak and Harry James.
His son described a humble beginning to Neal Hefti’s career. In 1941, a traveling band that had lost some members to the war effort invited him to tour with them on the East Coast but replaced him afterward, Paul Hefti said.
“He was way over his head,” Paul Hefti said. After leaving the band, “he was alone in New York with his trumpet and his case, but there was so much work there those days.”
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