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Dan Foliart: An Interview with Ron Sadoff Ron Sadoff, Interviewer material Introduction (1974–1984), Laverne and Shirley (1976–1983), Angie (1979–1980), Bosom Buddies (1980– Dan Foliart1’s music has been indelibly copyrighted1982), Joanie Loves Chachi (1982–1983), and etched on the landscape of network televi- Brothers (1984–1989). Since then, Foliart has sion, as he celebrates his forty-third consecu- composed the themes and underscores for tive year in the profession. Currently, he is over fifty television shows including Roseanne serving his fourth term on the ASCAP Board (1988–2018), Home Improvement (1991–1999), of Directors. He recently ended his service The Secret Life of the American Teenager as president of the Society of Composers & (2008–2013), and 7th Heaven (1996–2007). Lyricists (SCL) after serving the SCL for five Along with three Emmy nominations, Foliart terms over ten years. 2 has garnered thirty-four ASCAP Film and Beginning at Paramount Studios with then Television awards, including sixteen in the partner Howard Pearl, Foliart has composed Most Performed Theme category. for television shows including Happy Days Figure 1: Dan Foliart 38 music and the moving image 12.1 / spring 2019 ©2019 by the board of trustees of the university of illinois © Copyright 2019 by the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois. No part of this article may be reproduced, photocopied, posted online, or distributed through any means without the permission of the University of Illinois Press. MMI 12_1.indd 38 11/27/18 9:05 AM Sadoff : Dan Foliart 39 A native of Oklahoma City, Foliart had through Dan’s active life within Hollywood’s his symphonic work Oklahoma Trilogy per- music and film communities—by virtue of formed as part of the state’s centennial cel- his dedicated service as an “industry citi- ebration. While enrolled at Amherst College, zen”—we garner a sense of the person, and a where he received his BA degree, he had the rare glimpse into the personal, creative, and opportunity to co-write the song score for political forces that underlie his career. GD Spradlin’s film The Only Way Home with celebrated Nashville songwriter Tom Shap- Earlymaterial Influences iro. RS [RON SADOFF]: What composers or what Passionate about recognizing the heritage scores had an influence on you? What were of his chosen field, Foliart was responsible you attracted to as a kid that moved you? for instigating the Society of Composers & DF [Dan Foliart]: Well, here it’s very simple. Lyricists Ambassador program, which has I grew up in that era where the Beatles4 of honored numerous legends in the music course were next to God. I had to be influ- profession over the years. He has served enced by pop music. If we want to talk about for eleven years on the ASCAP Foundation orchestral music here. Board, four years on the ASCAP Nominat- RS: Well let’s talk about both . DF: My mother was a great pianist, and she was ing Committee, ten copyrightedyears on the Television a big influence on my life and continued to Academy’s Music Peer Committee, and sits be my biggest fan. She watched every single on the Advisory Board of the Hollywood TV show I ever did, I mean every single Symphony and the Film Music Society. one, and we’d talk afterwards. She thought I As scholars delve deeper into the myriad should listen to some classical music when I quantity of music composed for television, was growing up as a kid, and so it was Tchai- this bourgeoning field continues to reveal kovsky’s5 Pathétique.6 It was Dvorak’s7 New and define its rich history, aesthetics, and World Symphony.8 It was more coming from its most influential figures. This interview those kind of works than it was movie scores. 9 aims to examine and highlight the prolific I heard one piece, the Grand Canyon Suite 10 work and creative process of Dan Foliart, by Ferde Grofé, and that has remained one of the great inspirations in my life. When for “family entertainment”—an enduring I was writing Oklahoma Trilogy,11 this guy “genre” frequently neglected in the literature. reviewed Oklahoma Trilogy. He loved it, and Over his forty-three consecutive years in he compared it to the Grand Canyon Suite, the business, Foliart’s scores—sixty televi- which to me was the ultimate compliment. sion shows, consisting of over 1,300 epi- I listened to the Grand Canyon Suite. I also sodes3—have coalesced into a personal voice had a score. rooted in popular song and undergirded by There was a score that I really loved that an American ethos. His music constitutes a Victor Young12 did, Around the World in discernable sound for millions of viewers, Eighty Days.13 I’ve always loved very melodic spread over generations. Grounded in the scores, and Victor Young, I think, really American popular music vernacular, his wrote the book on how to write a wonder- ful melody. Of course he scored For Whom signature arises through the transformation the Bell Tolls,14 and he wrote “Stella by Star- of those familiar styles—often comprised of light”15 for The Uninvited,16 and of course infectious and inviting instrumental textures, “When I Fall In Love,”17 and Love Letters.18 and buoyed by inventive arrangements. There were all these beautiful themes that he His use of alternative guitar tunings and wrote that were internal themes for scores, incorporating extramusical sounds further and so I think Victor Young, even though I individualizes the tenor of his scores. Finally, probably had only heard at the time Around © Copyright 2019 by the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois. No part of this article may be reproduced, photocopied, posted online, or distributed through any means without the permission of the University of Illinois Press. MMI 12_1.indd 39 11/27/18 9:05 AM 40 music and the moving image 12.1 / spring 2019 the World in Eighty Days. [sings song] I well, it’s always been some kind of combina- mean it was just these gorgeous melodies, tion of the orchestral tradition and popular and I was fortunate enough to get a chance music. to spend some time in the music library at DF: It has. Paramount where he had done a lot of his RS: Dvorak, I think, would have made a great work, and so I got a chance later to pull out film composer. [laughs] and look at a lot of these scores. DF: Oh, well, just like Copland.24 I mean Cop- We were talking about Shuken19 and land has continued to be one of my favorites. Hayes.20 In fact they orchestrated a lot of I’mmaterial not sure that he was on my mother’s this music. What was amazing—and I don’t listening list. When I was working on Okla- know if you’ve seen any of these parts —is homa Trilogy—of course it’s hard to miss they would make these conductors’ scores Aaron’s influence in that genre. Oklahoma that actually had every single movement in immediately brings to mind kind of like “the a two-hand part, so the conductor could sit west,” right? I mean what are you going to there and actually look at the entire score. do? You’re not going to write a 12-tone piece Bob Bornstein21 at Paramount told me that about Oklahoma. Not that I would want to. sometimes it cost more to copy out one of That’s another thing that we will get into in these parts than it would for the rest of the my college career. I definitely had a different score, because they werecopyrighted so intricate. But I ideology about music than some of the pro- don’t know if you’ve ever seen any of those fessors I had at Amherst. I would have loved from the . to have had a good Ron Sadoff sitting around RS: They’re kind of like a piano part that can’t who might have had a little broader appre- be played? ciation for different things. DF:Yeah, basically, but it has everything. RS: Well, also there was an air in academia in RS: Right. universities in the ’50s and ’60s and ’70s. DF: It has everything. Really you’d have composers hired as profes- RS: Well in my estimation Victor Young is one sors who wrote music for their fifteen friends of those people, that hasn’t been highlighted who could understand it and deemed it enough. great. DF: You know, any time I can I bring his name DF: Yeah, I’m not going to look down my nose up I do. I think he was originally a violinist. at Schoenberg,25 Berg,26 and Webern,27 but Unfortunately he was going to do The Ten those were the only composers, at least when Commandments22 but he got very sick. That’s I went to college, who had much credibility actually how Elmer [Bernstein] got his first with the academic world, at least where I break—doing The Ten Commandments—be- was. I finally ran into a professor, unfortu- cause Victor Young was set to do it. Anyway, nately he was let go, who said he had a good to go back to my childhood, I think it was friend that actually was a good actor. This the pieces I already mentioned, and Sche- professor could sit at a piano and he could herazade23 was another one. I can’t tell you just improvise music. You couldn’t really tell why, but even after going through and study- if that was really 12-tone28 music or if that ing music and getting a degree, I still go back was just him improvising.