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Jerry Goldsmith was an American composer and conductor renowned for his groundbreaking film and television scores, blending orchestral traditions with electronic experimentation. Born in Los Angeles, Goldsmith studied under Miklós Rózsa at USC. He began scoring for 1950s television shows like 'The Twilight Zone' before transitioning to film. Over five decades, he created iconic scores for 'Planet of the Apes', 'Chinatown', 'Star Trek', 'Alien', and 'The Omen' (winning his sole Oscar). A pioneer in fusing symphonic and electronic elements, he received 18 Academy Award nominations and composed over 200 works before dying of cancer at 75.

• Goldsmith narrowly survived the 1997 Port Arthur massacre in Tasmania while scoring 'L.A. Confidential'; he hid under a table as a gunman killed 35 people nearby.
• His Oscar loss for 'Chinatown' (1974) to 'The Godfather Part II' is considered one of the Academy's most controversial scoring decisions.
• He revolutionized sci-fi sound with 'Planet of the Apes' (1968) by having brass players remove mouthpieces and blow through instruments unconventionally.
• Despite battling colon cancer for years, Goldsmith composed his final score for 'Looney Tunes: Back in Action' (2003) while undergoing chemotherapy.