Kenneth Thorne (26 January 1924 – 9 July 2014) was a British television and

film score A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film. The score comprises a number of orchestral, instrumental, or choral pieces called cues, which are timed to begin and end at specific points during the film in order to e ...

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Def ...

Early life

Thorne was born in

Dereham Dereham (), also known as East Dereham, is a town and civil parish in the Breckland District of the English county of Norfolk. It is situated on the A47 road, about 15 miles (25 km) west of the city of Norwich and 25 miles (4 ...

, a town in the English county of

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the Nor ...

. Thorne began his musical career as a pianist with the big bands of England during the 1940s, playing at night clubs and the dance halls. At age 27, Thorne decided to seriously study composition with private tutors at

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

and later studied the organ for five years in London.

Film scoring

Thorne began composing scores for films in 1948. He was considered Richard Lester's

of choice since their first work together on '' It's Trad, Dad!'' (1962), '' Help!'' (1965) and ''

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum ''A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum'' is a Musical theatre, musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart. Inspired by the farces of the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman playwright Plautu ...

'' (1966). When Henry Mancini was scoring Blake Edwards' 1968 film '' The Party'' with Peter Sellers, Thorne composed the soundtrack to '' Inspector Clouseau''. He also composed the music scores for '' How I Won the War'' (1967), The Monkees movie ''

Head A head is the part of an organism which usually includes the ears, brain, forehead, cheeks, chin, eyes, nose, and mouth, each of which aid in various sensory functions such as sight, hearing, smell, and taste. Some very simple animals ...

'' (1968), '' The Magic Christian'' (1969) and '' The Ritz'' (1976). He was also hired for Richard Lester's films '' Superman II'' and ''

III III or iii may refer to: Companies * Information International, Inc., a computer technology company * Innovative Interfaces, Inc., a library-software company * 3i, formerly Investors in Industry, a British investment company Other uses * ...

'' with instructions to reuse the themes composed by John Williams from the first film and adapt them for the sequels, also adding some original work. From the 1980s, Ken Thorne mainly focused on his work for TV, working predominantly with director Kevin Connor. His television work included the theme to the 1964 BBC series '' R3'', and he also scored incidental music for '' The Persuaders!'' and '' The Zoo Gang'' in the 1970s. His later work included the score for the miniseries ''

Return to Lonesome Dove ''Return to Lonesome Dove'' is a 1993 American four part television miniseries, written by John Wilder involving characters created in Larry McMurtry's Western novel ''Lonesome Dove'' which was broadcast by CBS and first aired on November 14–1 ...

'' in 1993. Thorne also had an unexpected chart hit in 1963 when his cover version of

Angelo Francesco Lavagnino Angelo Francesco Lavagnino (22 February 1909 – 21 August 1987) was an Italian composer, born in Genoa. He is best known for scoring many films, including ''Legend of the Lost'', ''Conspiracy of Hearts'', '' Gorgo'', ''The Legion's Last Patrol' ...

's "Theme from ''

The Legion's Last Patrol ''Marcia o Crepa'' (March or Die), known as ''The Legion's Last Patrol'' in the UK and ''Commando'' in the US, is a 1962 European (Italian, German, Spanish) co-production war film about the Algerian War of Independence. It was released in 1964 ...

''" (''Concerto Disperato'') reached #4 in the UK charts.

Death

Thorne died at a hospital in

West Hills, California West Hills is a suburban / residential community in the western San Fernando Valley region of the City of Los Angeles, California. The percentage of residents aged 35 and older is among the highest in Los Angeles County. The neighborhood was for ...

on 9 July 2014.

Selected filmography

*'' Three on a Spree'' (1961) *'' It's Trad, Dad!'' (1962) *'' She Knows Y'Know'' (1962) *''

Dead Man's Evidence ''Dead Man's Evidence'' is a 1962 British crime thriller film directed by Francis Searle. Its plot follows a British spy sent to Ireland to investigate the death of a former colleague who defected and who has been found dead on a beach. Cast * Co ...

'' (1962) *'' Master Spy'' (1963) *'' Help!'' (1965) *''

'' (1966) *'' How I Won the War'' (1967) *'' Inspector Clouseau'' (1968) *'' The Touchables'' (1968) *''

Sinful Davey ''Sinful Davey'' is a 1969 picaresque adventure/ crime/ comedy film directed by John Huston and starring John Hurt, Pamela Franklin, and in early appearances Fionnula Flanagan and Anjelica Huston. John Huston later said the film was "very good" ...

'' (1969) *'' The Bed-Sitting Room'' (1969) *'' The Magic Christian'' (1969) *''

A Talent for Loving ''A Talent for Loving; or The Great Cowboy Race'' was the fourth novel by Richard Condon Richard Thomas Condon (March 18, 1915 – April 9, 1996) was an American political novelist. Though his works were satire, they were generally transform ...

'' (1969) *'' Hannie Caulder'' (1971) *''

Juggernaut A juggernaut (), in current English usage, is a literal or metaphorical force regarded as merciless, destructive, and unstoppable. This English usage originated in the mid-nineteenth century and was adapted from the Sanskrit word Jagannath. ...

'' (1974) *'' The Ritz'' (1976) *'' Power Play'' (1978) *'' Arabian Adventure'' (1979) *'' The Outsider'' (1980) *'' Superman II'' (1980) *'' Wolf Lake'' (1980) *'' The Hunchback of Notre Dame'' (1982) *''

The House Where Evil Dwells ''The House Where Evil Dwells'' is a 1982 American-Japanese horror film starring Edward Albert, Susan George (actress), Susan George and Doug McClure about an American family that moves into a reputed haunted house in the hills of Japan. It was d ...

'' (1982) *'' Superman III'' (1983) *'' Lassiter'' (1984) *'' The Evil That Men Do'' (1984) *'' Finders Keepers'' (1984) *'' The Trouble with Spies'' (1987) *'' Sunset Grill'' (1993) *''

Mary, Mother of Jesus Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jews, Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Jose ...

'' (1999) *''

In the Beginning (miniseries) ''In the Beginning'' is a 2000 American two-part biblical television miniseries directed by Kevin Connor. It stars Martin Landau and Jacqueline Bisset and originally aired on NBC on November 12 and 13, 2000. Plot ''In the Beginning'' is the sto ...

'' (2000) *'' Santa Jr.'' (2002)

Awards and nominations

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

** Winner for Best Music, Scoring of Music, Adaptation or Treatment: ''

'' (1966) * Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films ** Nominated for Best Music ''

'' (1982) ** Nominated for Best Music '' Superman II'' (1980) ** Nominated for Best Music '' Arabian Adventure'' (1979) *

Emmy Awards The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

** Nominated for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Music and Lyrics for "For A Love Like You" from '' A Season of Hope'' (1995) hared with Dennis Spiegel (lyricist)* Grammy Awards ** Nominated for Best Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or Television Show for '' Help!'' (1965) hared_with_John_Lennon,_Paul_McCartney.html" ;"title="John_Lennon.html" ;"title="hared with John Lennon">hared with John Lennon, Paul McCartney">John_Lennon.html" ;"title="hared with John Lennon">hared with John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison]

References

External links

*
Ken Thorne at ''Epdlp''

Obituary
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thorne, Ken 2014 deaths 1924 births British film score composers British male film score composers British composers People from Dereham Best Original Music Score Academy Award winners