Henry Mancini (April 16, 1924 - June 14, 1994), was a noted American composer and arranger. He is remembered particularly for being a composer of film and television scores, and won a record number of Grammy awards (including a "Lifetime Achievement" award in 1995).
He was born Enrico Nicola Mancini in Cleveland, Ohio, and grew up in the Pittsburgh suburb of West Aliquippa, Pennsylvania.
Although he was drafted into the Army during World War Two, Mancini was able to get a transfer from the infantry to the band. The compositions for which he is best known include "Moon River" (the theme song from the 1961 film Breakfast at Tiffany's), and the theme music for the 1963 films The Pink Panther and Charade. He is often credited with composing the music for the Peanuts movies, the well-known theme Linus and Lucy in particular. However, these songs were composed and performed by another esteemed jazz pianist, Vince Guaraldi. Although much of Mancini's work can be classified as easy listening, he was capable of writing powerful and rousing scores such as that for Lifeforce.
Two of his earliest scores were for the TV shows, Peter Gunn (1958) and Mr. Lucky (1959). A notable addition later in his career was the theme song to the sitcom Newhart (1982).
He died at age 70 in Beverly Hills, California of pancreatic cancer.
The Great Mouse Detective (1986)
