Robert Oliver Ragland (July 3, 1931 – April 18, 2012) was an American

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 ...

composer, best known for his soundtracks to numerous

genre films Genre Films, usually credited as Kinberg Genre, is a production company founded by screenwriter-producer-director Simon Kinberg. History Genre Films in April 2010 signed a first-look deal with 20th Century Fox, which gave Fox "direct access" ...

ranging from

blaxploitation In American cinema, Blaxploitation is the film subgenre of action movie derived from the exploitation film genre in the early 1970s, consequent to the combined cultural momentum of the black civil rights movement, the black power movement, ...

( ''Abby''), to

horror Horror may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Genres *Horror fiction, a genre of fiction **Psychological horror, a subgenre of horror fiction **Christmas horror, a subgenre of horror fiction **Analog horror, a subgenre of horror fiction * ...

('' Mansion of the Doomed'', ''The Supernaturals''), to

monster movie A monster movie, monster film, creature feature or giant monster film is a film that focuses on one or more characters struggling to survive attacks by one or more antagonistic monsters, often abnormally megafauna, large ones. The film may also ...

s ( ''Q'', ''Grizzly''), to

thrillers Thriller is a genre of fiction with numerous, often overlapping, subgenres, including crime, horror, and detective fiction. Thrillers are characterized and defined by the moods they elicit, giving their audiences heightened feelings of suspe ...

(''

10 to Midnight ''10 to Midnight'' is a 1983 American neo noir-thriller film directed by J. Lee Thompson from a screenplay originally written by William Roberts. The film stars Charles Bronson in the lead role with a supporting cast that includes Lisa Eilbach ...

'') and

action film The action film is a film genre that predominantly features chase sequences, fights, shootouts, explosions, and stunt work. The specifics of what constitutes an action film has been in scholarly debate since the 1980s. While some scholars such as D ...

s ( ''Assassination'', '' Messenger of Death''). Throughout his career, he worked with

cult film A cult film, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a cult following. Cult films are known for their dedicated, passionate fanbase, which forms an elaborate subculture, members of which engage in repeated ...

makers including

William Girdler William Girdler (October 22, 1947 – January 21, 1978) was an American filmmaker. In a span of six years, from 1972 to 1978, he directed nine feature films in such genres as horror and action. Girdler also wrote and produced three of his featu ...

Menahem Golan Menahem Golan (; May 31, 1929 – August 8, 2014, originally Menachem Globus) was an Israelis, Israeli film producer, screenwriter, and director. He co-owned The Cannon Group with his cousin Yoram Globus. Cannon specialized in producing low-to-mid ...

Larry Cohen Lawrence George Cohen (July 15, 1936 – March 23, 2019) was an American filmmaker. He originally emerged as the writer of blaxploitation films such as ''Black Caesar (film), Black Caesar'' and ''Hell Up in Harlem'' (both 1973), before becomin ...

, and

J. Lee Thompson John Lee Thompson (1 August 1914 – 30 August 2002) was an English film director, screenwriter and producer. Initially an exponent of social realism, he became known as a versatile and prolific director of thrillers, action, and adventure fil ...

Biography

Ragland was born in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. He attended

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

and also earned degrees at the

American Conservatory of Music The American Conservatory of Music (ACM) was a major American school of music founded in Chicago in 1886 by John James Hattstaedt (1851–1931). The conservatory was incorporated as an Illinois non-profit corporation. It developed the Conservat ...

in Chicago and the

University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna The University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna (, abbreviated MDW) is an Austrian university established in 1817 located in Vienna. With a student body of over three thousand, it is the largest institution of its kind in Austria, and one of t ...

. He served as a music arranger for the

Dorsey Brothers Orchestra The Dorsey Brothers were an American studio dance band, led by Tommy Dorsey, Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey. They started recording in 1928 for OKeh Records. History The Dorsey Brothers recorded songs for the dime store labels (Banner Records, Banner, ...

in his early years. Outside of scoring music for film and television, he often served as a music arranger and orchestrator for singers including

Marvin Gaye Marvin Pentz Gaye Jr. (; April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984) was an American Rhythm and blues, R&B and soul singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. He helped shape the sound of Motown in the 1960s, first as an in-house session player an ...

and

Pat Boone Patrick Charles Eugene Boone (born June 1, 1934) is an American singer, songwriter, actor, author, television personality, radio host and philanthropist. He sold nearly 50 million records, had 38 Top 40 hits, and has acted in many films. Boone ...

and rock bands including

Nelson (band) Nelson is an American hard rock duo consisting of brothers Matthew and Gunnar Nelson. They are the twin sons of Ricky Nelson and Kristin Nelson. The duo achieved success during the early 1990s with their debut album ''After the Rain (Nelson albu ...

and

Dokken Dokken is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1978. It split up in 1989 and reformed four years later. The band has had several hit singles which charted on the Billboard Hot 100, such as " Alone Again", " In My Dreams", and ...

. Ragland was married to Martha Montgomery Newman from 1972 to 2005 after the death of her husband, nine-time Oscar winning composer

Alfred Newman (composer) Alfred Newman (March 17, 1900 – February 17, 1970) was an American composer, arranger, and conductor of film music. From his start as a music prodigy, he came to be regarded as a respected figure in the history of film music. He won nine Acad ...

. He died, aged 80, on April 18, 2012, at

Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Cedars-Sinai Medical Center is a non-profit, Tertiary referral hospital, tertiary, 915-bed teaching hospital and multi-specialty academic health science centre, academic health science center located in Los Angeles, California. Part of the Cedars ...

in Los Angeles.

Selected filmography

Composer

*'' Weekend with the Babysitter'' (1969) *'' Cindy and Donna'' (1970) *''

The Yin and the Yang of Mr. Go ''The Yin and the Yang of Mr. Go'' is a 1970 British thriller film directed by Burgess Meredith. It was shot in Hong Kong and Toronto, Canada. Plot An American army deserter, fanatic and aspiring writer named Nero Finnigan, living in Hong K ...

'' (1970) *''

The Touch of Satan ''The Touch of Satan'' is a 1971 American independent horror film directed by Don Henderson and starring Michael Berry and Emby Mellay in their debut roles. The film was shot between 1968 and 1970 in the Santa Ynez, California area and featured e ...

'' (1971) *''

The Thing with Two Heads ''The Thing with Two Heads'' is a 1972 American blaxploitation science fiction comedy film directed by Lee Frost and starring Ray Milland, Rosey Grier, Don Marshall, Roger Perry, Kathy Baumann, and Chelsea Brown. Plot Dr. Maxwell Kirshner ar ...

'' (1972) *'' The Daring Dobermans'' (1973) *''

Abby Abby or Abbie is a given name, most often a shortened form of Abigail (name), Abigail and Albert (given name), Albert. Notable women * Abbie Betinis (born 1980), American composer * Abby Binay (born 1975), Filipino politician * Abbie Boudre ...

'' (1974) *'' Seven Alone'' (1974) *''

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superheroine who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in ''All Star Comics'' Introducing Wonder Woman, #8, published October 21, 1941, with her first feature in ''Sensation Comic ...

'' (1975) *''

Sharks' Treasure ''Sharks' Treasure'' is a 1975 American adventure film written, produced and directed by Cornel Wilde and starring Cornel Wilde and Yaphet Kotto. Plot Eccentric charter Skipper (boating), skipper Jim Carnahan (Cornel Wilde) and his team of hard- ...

'' (1975) *''

Return to Macon County Return to Macon County is a 1975 American action-drama film directed by Richard Compton. A sequel in name only to ''Macon County Line'' (1974), the film stars Nick Nolte and Don Johnson as two young drag racers traveling through the Southern Unit ...

'' (1975) *''

Grizzly The grizzly bear (''Ursus arctos horribilis''), also known as the North American brown bear or simply grizzly, is a population or subspecies of the brown bear inhabiting North America. In addition to the mainland grizzly (''Ursus arctos horr ...

'' (1976) * '' Pony Express Rider'' (1976) *'' Mansion of the Doomed'' (1976) *'' Project: Kill'' (1976) *'' Rooster: Spurs of Death!'' (1977) *''

Jaguar Lives! ''Jaguar Lives!'' is a 1979 American action film directed by Ernest Pintoff and starring Joe Lewis, Christopher Lee, Donald Pleasence and Barbara Bach. Its plot follows a secret agent who battles an international drugs ring. Plot Cast * Jo ...

'' (1979) *''

The Glove The Glove was a 1983 English musical collaboration and recording project by the Cure's Robert Smith and Siouxsie and the Banshees' Steven Severin. They released one studio album, '' Blue Sunshine'', in 1983 as part of Severin's solo deal with ...

'' (1979) *'' Mountain Family Robinson'' (1979) *''

Lovely But Deadly ''Lovely But Deadly'' is a 1981 action film about a cheerleader who goes undercover to fight drug dealers. The film stars Lucinda Dooling, John Randolph, Mel Novak and Richard Herd. Directed by David Sheldon with a story by Lawrence D. Foldes, ...

'' (1981) *'' A Time to Die'' (1982) *'' Q'' (1982) *''

'' (1983) *''

Evils of the Night ''Evils of the Night'' is a 1985 American science fiction horror filmMank, Gregory W. (2001). ''Hollywood cauldron: thirteen horror films from the genre's golden age.'' McFarland, , . starring Aldo Ray, Neville Brand, Tina Louise, John Carradine, ...

'' (1985) *''

The Supernaturals The Supernaturals are a guitar-based indie rock band from Glasgow, Scotland. The band signed to Parlophone in 1996, and had a string of singles which were taken from their three albums and four EPs. Other members included Mark Guthrie, Derek ...

'' (1986) *''

Assassination Assassination is the willful killing, by a sudden, secret, or planned attack, of a personespecially if prominent or important. It may be prompted by political, ideological, religious, financial, or military motives. Assassinations are orde ...

'' (1987) *'' Prettykill'' (1987) *''

Moon in Scorpio ''Moon in Scorpio'' is a 1987 American horror film directed by Gary Graver. and starring Britt Ekland, John Phillip Law, and William Smith. Plot Newly married couple Linda and Allen plan to take a trip to Acapulco for their honeymoon. Joining ...

'' (1987) *'' Deep Space'' (1988) *'' Messenger of Death'' (1988) *'' The Fifth Monkey'' (1990) *''

Tarzán ''Tarzán'' is a television series that aired in syndication from 1991–1994. In this version of the show, Tarzan ( Wolf Larson) was portrayed as a blond environmentalist, with Jane (Lydie Denier) turned into a French ecologist. The series air ...

'' (1991-1992) *'' No Place to Hide'' (1993) *''

The Raffle ''The Raffle'' () is a 1991 Italian comedy-drama film written and directed by Francesco Laudadio. It marked the film debut of Monica Bellucci. Plot In Bari, Italy, Francesca, a beautiful and wealthy woman, is widowed and left with her daughter Gi ...

'' (1994) *'' The Fear'' (1995) *''

Project Shadowchaser IV ''Project Shadowchaser IV'', also known as ''Shadowchaser IV'', ''Shadowchaser: The Gates Of Time'', ''Orion's Key'' and ''Alien Chaser'', is a 1996 science fiction film by director Mark Roper. It is the fourth and final installment in the ''Pro ...

'' (1996) *'' Plato's Run'' (1996) *'' Evil Obsession'' (1997) *'' Motel Blue'' (1997) *'' Top of the World'' (1997) *'' Lima: Breaking the Silence'' (1999) *''

Crime and Punishment ''Crime and Punishment'' is a novel by the Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky. It was first published in the literary journal '' The Russian Messenger'' in twelve monthly installments during 1866.

'' (2002) *'' Downtown: A Street Tale'' (2004)

Actor

*''

The Day of the Locust ''The Day of the Locust'' is a 1939 novel by American author Nathanael West set in Hollywood, California. The novel follows a young artist from the Yale School of Fine Arts named Tod Hackett, who has been hired by a Hollywood studio to do scene ...

'' (1975) - Guest #5

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ragland, Robert 1931 births 2012 deaths American film score composers American male film score composers Conductors of the Hollywood Studio Symphony Musicians from Chicago Northwestern University alumni Varèse Sarabande Records artists