Charles Ira Fox (born October 30, 1940) is an American composer for film and television. His compositions include the

sunshine pop Sunshine pop (originally known as soft pop) is a subgenre of pop music that originated in Southern California in the mid-1960s. Rooted in easy listening and advertising jingles, sunshine pop acts combined nostalgic or anxious moods with "an appre ...

musical backgrounds which accompanied every episode of the 1970s ABC-TV show ''

Love, American Style ''Love, American Style'' is an anthology comedy television series that aired on ABC from 1969 to 1974. The series was produced by Paramount Television. During the 1971–72 and 1972–73 seasons, it was a part of ABC's Friday primetime lineup ...

''; the

theme song Theme music is a musical composition that is often written specifically for radio programming, television shows, video games, or films and is usually played during the title sequence, opening credits, closing credits, and in some instances at s ...

for the late 1970s ABC series ''

The Love Boat ''The Love Boat'' is an American romantic comedy/drama television series that aired on ABC from 1977 to 1986; in addition, four three-hour specials aired in 1986, 1987, and 1990. The series was set on the luxury passenger cruise ship MS ''Pa ...

''; and the dramatic theme music to ABC's '' Wide World of Sports'' and the original ''

Monday Night Football ''ESPN Monday Night Football'' (abbreviated as ''MNF'' and also known as ''ESPN Monday Night Football on ABC'' for simulcasts) is an American live television broadcast of weekly National Football League (NFL) games currently airing on ESPN, A ...

''; as well as the Grammy-winning hit song "

Killing Me Softly with His Song "Killing Me Softly with His Song" is a song composed by Charles Fox with lyrics by Norman Gimbel. The lyrics were written in collaboration with Lori Lieberman after she was inspired by a Don McLean performance in late 1971. Denied writing credi ...

", written in collaboration with

Lori Lieberman Lori Lieberman (born November 15, 1951) is an American singer-songwriter who accompanies herself on guitar and piano. She first came to public attention in the early 1970s with a series of albums on Capitol Records, the first of which featured t ...

and Fox's longtime writing partner,

Norman Gimbel Norman Gimbel (November 16, 1927 – December 19, 2018) was an American lyricist of popular songs, television and movie themes. He wrote the lyrics for songs including " Killing Me Softly with His Song", "Ready to Take a Chance Again" (both with ...

Early life

Fox was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

, the son of Mollie and Walter Fox. Walter was a

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

immigrant from Szydlowiec,

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, , is a country in Central Europe. Poland is divided into Voivodeships of Poland, sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 mill ...

. While still a student at the

High School of Music & Art The High School of Music & Art, informally known as "Music & Art" (or "M&A"), was a public specialized high school located at 443-465 West 135th Street in the borough of Manhattan, New York, from 1936 until 1984. In 1961, Music & Art and the High ...

, Fox studied jazz piano with

Lennie Tristano Leonard Joseph Tristano (March 19, 1919 – November 18, 1978) was an American jazz pianist, composer, arranger, and teacher of jazz improvisation. Tristano studied for bachelor's and master's degrees in music in Chicago before moving to New Yo ...

. He then continued his musical education with

Nadia Boulanger Juliette Nadia Boulanger (; 16 September 188722 October 1979) was a French music teacher and conductor. She taught many of the leading composers and musicians of the 20th century, and also performed occasionally as a pianist and organist. From a ...

, first at

Fontainebleau Fontainebleau (; ) is a commune in the metropolitan area of Paris, France. It is located south-southeast of the centre of Paris. Fontainebleau is a sub-prefecture of the Seine-et-Marne department, and it is the seat of the ''arrondissement ...

and then privately in Paris. Following his return to the United States, he studied electronic music with Vladimir Ussachevsky at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manha ...

. He married Joan Susan Redman on September 9, 1962.

Career

His career started by playing the piano for, composing and arranging for artists such as

Ray Barretto Raymundo "Ray" Barretto Pagán (April 29, 1929 – February 17, 2006) was an American percussionist and bandleader of Puerto Rican descent. Throughout his career as a percussionist, he played a wide variety of Latin music styles, as well as Lati ...

, Joe Quijano and Tito Puente. He also wrote theme music and arranged for

Skitch Henderson Lyle Russel "Skitch" Henderson (January 27, 1918 – November 1, 2005) was a pianist, conductor, and composer. His nickname "Skitch" came from his ability to "re-sketch" a song in a different key. Bing Crosby suggested that he should use the ...

and The Tonight Show Orchestra. Fox worked under the banner of Bob Israel's Score Productions where he composed the themes for several Goodson-Todman game shows including NBC's version of the '' Match Game,'' the syndicated versions of ''

What's My Line? ''What's My Line?'' is a panel game show that originally ran in the United States on the CBS Television Network from 1950 to 1967, originally in black and white and later in color, with subsequent U.S. revivals. The game uses celebrity paneli ...

,'' and '' To Tell The Truth,'' whose lyrics were written by Goodson-Todman director

Paul Alter Paul Alter (March 11, 1922 – June 11, 2011) was an American television director, specializing in game shows for Mark Goodson Productions. Alter was best known as the original director of ''Family Feud'' from the show's origin in the mid-1970s ...

. He co-composed the theme song and all the original scores for ''

,'' along with Arnold Margolin. Fox also composed the music for "

," featuring lyrics by

and

, in 1972. The song was inspired by Lieberman listening to

Don McLean Donald McLean III (born October 2, 1945) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. He is best known for his 1971 hit song " American Pie", an eight-and-a-half-minute folk rock "cultural touchstone" about the loss of innocence of the early ...

sing at a nightclub in Los Angeles. Fox and Gimbel had been managing her early career, and the song was released first by Lieberman, with writing credit assigned to Fox and Gimbel, cutting Lieberman out. Lieberman's version was only a minor hit, but the song became an international number 1 hit for

Roberta Flack Roberta Cleopatra Flack (born February 10, 1937) is a retired American singer. She topped the ''Billboard'' charts with the No. 1 singles " The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face", " Killing Me Softly with His Song", " Feel Like Makin' Love", " W ...

in 1973 and again for the Fugees in 1997. The song won the Grammy for Best Song in 1973. Fox denies Lieberman's involvement, and failed to force McLean to change his website. Fox and Gimbel later wrote the themes for many films such as '' The Last American Hero'' (" I Got a Name", sung by

Jim Croce James Joseph Croce (; January 10, 1943 – September 20, 1973) was an American folk and rock singer-songwriter. Between 1966 and 1973, he released five studio albums and numerous singles. During this period, Croce took a series of odd jobs to p ...

), '' Foul Play'' ("

Ready to Take a Chance Again "Ready to Take a Chance Again" is a 1978 international hit single performed by Barry Manilow. The song was composed by Charles Fox, with lyrics by Fox's writing partner, Norman Gimbel. Manilow conceived and supervised the song's recording in p ...

", sung by

Barry Manilow Barry Manilow (born Barry Alan Pincus; June 17, 1943) is an American singer and songwriter with a career that spans seven decades. His hit recordings include "Could It Be Magic", " Somewhere Down the Road", " Mandy", "I Write the Songs", " Can ...

) and many television series, including ''

The Bugaloos ''The Bugaloos'' is an American children's television series, produced by brothers Sid and Marty Krofft, that aired on NBC on Saturday mornings from 1970 to 1972. Reruns of the show aired in daily syndication from 1978 to 1985 as part of the "Krof ...

,'' ''

Happy Days ''Happy Days'' is an American television sitcom that aired first-run on the ABC network from January 15, 1974, to July 19, 1984, with a total of 255 half-hour episodes spanning 11 seasons. Created by Garry Marshall, it was one of the most su ...

,'' ''

Laverne & Shirley ''Laverne & Shirley'' (originally ''Laverne DeFazio & Shirley Feeney'') is an American sitcom television series that played for eight seasons on ABC from January 27, 1976, to May 10, 1983. A spin-off of '' Happy Days'', ''Laverne & Shirley'' st ...

'' (" Making Our Dreams Come True" sung by Cyndi Grecco), '' Angie'' ("Different Worlds" sung by

Maureen McGovern Maureen Therese McGovern (born July 27, 1949) is an American singer and Broadway actress, well known for her renditions of the songs " The Morning After" from the 1972 film '' The Poseidon Adventure''; " We May Never Love Like This Again" from ' ...

), ''

The Paper Chase The Paper Chase (stylized as "the pAper chAse") was an American alternative rock band formed in 1998 by producer/engineer John Congleton in Dallas, Texas, who were signed to Kill Rock Stars and Southern Records. Their albums ''God Bless Your Blac ...

'' ("The First Years" sung by

Seals and Crofts Seals and Crofts was an American soft rock duo made up of James Eugene Seals (October 17, 1942 – June 6, 2022) and Darrell George "Dash" Crofts (born August 14, 1938) They are best known for their hits " Summer Breeze" (1972), " Diamond Girl" ...

; Emmy-nominated Best Song), and ''

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superhero created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (pen name: Charles Moulton), and artist Harry G. Peter. Marston's wife, Elizabeth, and their life partner, Olive Byrne, are credited as being ...

.'' He also wrote "Together Through The Years" along with fellow composer Stephen Geyer for '' The Hogan Family'' series, sung by

. In 1977, Fox composed " Love Boat", the theme to the popular TV series ''

''. It had lyrics by

Paul Williams Paul Williams may refer to: Authors * Paul O. Williams (1935–2009), American science-fiction author and poet * Paul L. Williams (author) (born 1944), FBI consultant, journalist * Paul Williams (journalist) (1948–2013), American founder of mu ...

, and was sung by

Jack Jones Jack Jones may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music *Jack Jones (American singer) (born 1938), American jazz and pop singer *Jack Jones, stage name of Australian singer Irwin Thomas (born 1971) *Jack Jones (Welsh musician) (born 1992), Welsh mu ...

until the ninth and final season when

Dionne Warwick Marie Dionne Warwick (; born December 12, 1940) is an American singer, actress, and television host. Warwick ranks among the 40 biggest U.S. hit makers between 1955 and 1999, based on her chart history on ''Billboards Hot 100 pop singles ch ...

was featured. The single released by Jack Jones in 1979 peaked at #37 on the Billboard US

Adult Contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quiet ...

chart. In February 1981, Fox peaked at #75 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 with the song, ''"Seasons".'' It was co-written and co-produced by

Ed Newmark Ed, ed or ED may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Ed'' (film), a 1996 film starring Matt LeBlanc * Ed (''Fullmetal Alchemist'') or Edward Elric, a character in ''Fullmetal Alchemist'' media * ''Ed'' (TV series), a TV series that ran fro ...

. In 2010, Fox published his memoirs, ''Killing Me Softly: My Life in Music''. "The Charles Fox Singers" was the credited name for the group vocalists who performed his compositions on television and movie themes and cues; they were actually The Ron Hicklin Singers.

Film scores

In total Fox has created film scores for over 100 films including: * '' Barbarella'' (1968) * '' The Green Slime'' (English language version only, 1969) * '' Goodbye, Columbus'' (1969) * ''

Pufnstuf ''H.R. Pufnstuf'' is a children's television series produced by Sid and Marty Krofft in the United States. It was the first Krofft live-action, life-sized-puppet program (not including their previous work with the Hanna-Barbera program ''The ...

'' (1970) * '' Making It'' (1971) * ''

Star Spangled Girl ''Star Spangled Girl'' is a 1971 American romantic comedy film directed by Jerry Paris and based on the 1966 Neil Simon play ''The Star-Spangled Girl''. It stars Sandy Duncan, Tony Roberts, Todd Susman, and Elizabeth Allen. Plot In a Los Ang ...

'' (1971) * '' Women in Chains'' (1972) * '' A Separate Peace'' (1972) * '' Dying Room Only'' (1973) * '' The Laughing Policeman'' (1973) * '' The Last American Hero'' (1973) (NY Film critics Best Song of the year " I Got a Name") * '' The Stranger Within'' (1974) * '' Bug'' (1975) * '' The Other Side of the Mountain'' (1975) (Oscar and Golden Globe Nominated, Best Song "Richard's Window" and Best Score) * '' The Duchess and the Dirtwater Fox'' (1976) * '' Two-Minute Warning'' (1976) * ''

Victory at Entebbe ''Victory at Entebbe'' is a 1976 American made-for-television action-drama film for broadcast on ABC, directed by Marvin J. Chomsky. The film starred Helmut Berger, Linda Blair, Anthony Hopkins, Burt Lancaster, Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Dreyfuss, ...

'' (1976) * '' One on One'' (1977) * '' Foul Play'' (1978) (Oscar & Golden Globe nominated, Best Song "Ready To Take A Chance Again") * '' The Last Married Couple in America'' (1980) * '' Little Darlings'' (1980) * '' Oh, God! Book II'' (1980) * '' 9 to 5'' (1980) * '' Six Pack'' (1982) * '' Strange Brew'' (1983) * '' National Lampoon's European Vacation'' (1985) * '' Doin' Time'' (1985) * ''

Christmas Comes to Willow Creek ''Christmas Comes to Willow Creek'' is a 1987 American made-for-television drama film directed by Richard Lang and produced by Billie André and Blue André, with the screenplay written by Michael Norell and Andy Siegel. The film stars John Sch ...

'' (1987) * '' Short Circuit 2'' (1988) * '' The Gods Must Be Crazy II'' (1990) * '' Repossessed'' (1990) * '' A Thousand Heroes'' (1992) * '' Christmas in Connecticut'' (1992) * '' Gordy'' (1995)

Awards and honors

* Fox was inducted into the

Songwriters Hall of Fame The Songwriters Hall of Fame (SHOF) is an American institution founded in 1969 by songwriter Johnny Mercer, music publisher/songwriter Abe Olman, and publisher/executive Howie Richmond to honor those whose work, represent, and maintain, the he ...

in 2004. * BMI Richard Kirk Award For Outstanding Life Achievement *

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

–

Grammy Award for Song of the Year The Grammy Award for Song of the Year is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. The Song of the Year award is one of the four most prestigious categories at t ...

- "Killing Me Softly with His Song" *

New York Film Critics Circle The New York Film Critics Circle (NYFCC) is an American film critic organization founded in 1935 by Wanda Hale from the New York ''Daily News''. Its membership includes over 30 film critics from New York-based daily and weekly newspapers, maga ...

– Best Film Song - “I Got a Name” *

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 ...

– Best Score - “Love American Style” * Emmy Winner – Best Theme Song - “Love American Style” * Emmy Nomination (Four Times) – Best Score, “Love American Style” * Emmy Nomination – Best Song, “The Paper Chase” *

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 ...

–

Academy Award Nomination for Best Original Song An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, f ...

, “Richard’s Window”/The Other Side of the Mountain * Oscar Nomination – Best Song, “Ready to Take a Chance Again”/Foul Play *

Golden Globe Awards The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of ...

–

Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score The Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score is a Golden Globe Award presented by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), an organization of journalists who cover the United States film industry, but are affiliated with publications o ...

, "The Other Side of the Mountain” * Golden Globe Nomination – Best Song, “Richard’s Window”/The Other Side of the Mountain * Golden Globe Nomination – Best Song, “Ready to Take a Chance Again”/Foul Play * Grammy Nomination – Best Soundtrack for a film, “Nine to Five” *

Society of Composers and Lyricists The Society of Composers & Lyricists is an organization founded in 1983 to represent composers and lyricists working in visual media, such as television and film. It sought union status in 1984 after the dissolution of the Composers and Lyricists Gu ...

, “Ambassador’s Award” for Life Achievement * Bronx Walk of Fame, inducted 2008 * Smithsonian Museum permanent exhibit, inducted 2011 *Middleburg Film Festival - Legacy Composer Award, 2021

References

External links

* *
Songwriters Hall of Fame

KillingMeSoftly.com
*
Charles Fox Interview
NAMM Oral History Library (2020) {{DEFAULTSORT:Fox, Charles 1940 births American expatriates in France American film score composers American male film score composers American people of Polish-Jewish descent American television composers Columbia University alumni Composers from New York City Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School alumni Grammy Award winners Jewish American film score composers Jewish American songwriters Jewish American television composers Living people Male television composers Musicians from New York City Wide World of Sports (American TV series)