Biography

Joseph Nussbaum was known for orchestrating the Academy Award-winning movies Gone with the Wind, Rebecca, Meet Me in St. Louis and Anchor's Away. He was born in London, England; died in Hollywood and is buried in Mt. Sinai Memorial Park in Los Angeles.

Starting in the mid-30s in Hollywood, Nussbaum composed and arranged throughout a prolific and eclectic movie and television career until his early death at age 61. His work is extremely varied, ranging from James A FitzPatrick travelogues to MGM musicals. Nussbaum worked for most of the major studios and orchestrated movies for Alfred Hitchcock and David O. Selznick, among others. He collaborated extensively with composer Rudolf Friml, who called on Nussbaum for virtually all of his works. In 1938, Nussbaum was one of the founding members of ASMAC, the American Society of Music Arrangers and Composers.

Nussbaum was classically trained. In 1910 at the remarkable age of 13, he graduated from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts before migrating to the US at 16. After serving in the US Army in WWI, Nussbaum began a composing and arranging career in New York City. In the 1920s he composed a number of nationally-popular music pieces, including foxtrots like "A Fascinatin' Vamp" and "Chinese Moon." He was a trusted arranger for the popular bandleaders Vincent Lopez and Paul Whiteman. Inspired by the success of Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue, Nussbaum collaborated on an ambitious symphonic work with the Black American blues legend W. C. Handy. Handy and Nussbaum's The Evolution of the Blues was premiered by Lopez at the Metropolitan Opera House in 1924, months after the debut of Rhapsody in Blue. While in New York City Nussbaum mainly composed and arranged theatrical works, including many for producer Billy Rose. Rose successfully encouraged Nussbaum to move on to movie music in Hollywood.

Nussbaum's career spanned much of the "golden age" of Hollywood. The listing of his large and diverse output reveals an unpretentious yet impressive career in making some of Hollywood's best movies better through music.

- IMDb mini biography by: Bruce Barrett