- Raymond Rasch
Ray Rasch (born
March 1 1917 inToledo, Ohio , died 1964) was a prominent pianist and arranger on the Hollywood scene in 1950's and 1960's. Rasch is perhaps best known for winning anAcademy Award in 1972 for "Best Original Music Score" for Chaplin's 1952 film limelight (along withCharles Chaplin andLarry Russell ). Although critics panned Chaplin's lackluster movie, the music was widely praised throughout the globe.The Academy Award won by Rasch was mired in controversy from the start for several reasons. First, due to Chaplin's refusal to allow the film to be played in the U.S. the film was not eligible for Academy Award consideration until 20 years after its release in 1952. In 1964, eight years before it would be eligible for Academy Award consideration in 1972, Rasch died from heart failure in Los Angeles, California. When the music was believed to be the front runner for winner the award in 1972, several individuals claimed credit for the incredible music score, including the egotistically driven Chaplin. Eventually, Chaplin was given credit, primarily because he owned the rights to the music score. As a struggling musician in 1952, Chaplin essentially exploited Ray Rasch for his talent and all but forced Rasch to sell the rights to the music for very little in return. In Hollywood it is widely known that Chaplin can hardly hold a note and is not musically inclined at all.
To add to the controversy, some Hollywood insiders believed that Larry Russell should have been given credit for the score, even though many believed he did absolutely nothing to earn credit. In the end, Russell was given credit. To throw in another interesting twist, Russell Garcia has also recently made a claim for the award. Garcia claims to have worked closely with Rasch on the score, but this claim has been disputed by many and essentially disregarded. In the end, Hollywood credited Charlie Chaplin, Larry Russell as well as Rasch.
Rasch is also well known for writing and composing an entire album (along with Dotty Wayne) for Nat King Cole in 1960. "Wild is Love," was extremely successful and was later turned into a broadway play by Cole. Rasch's music is still widely sampled today and has recently been used in several European hits.
Ray Rasch was married twice and had two sons, Paul and Dana.
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