John Cacavas
Encyclopedia
John Cacavas is a composer
and conductor
probably best known for his television
scores, notably Kojak
, for which he was the chief composer, and for which he composed the second main title theme, used throughout the show's 5th and final season. The somewhat more well-known first Kojak theme, in two distinct arrangements, however, is not by Cacavas, but rather the work of Billy Goldenberg
, who scored the early episodes. Cacavas's television credits also include Hawaii Five-O
, The Bionic Woman
, Mrs. Columbo, and Buck Rogers in the 25th Century
. While he has extensive credits in television series and television movie
s, such as Perfect Murder, Perfect Town
, he has comparatively few credits for film score
s, most notably two entries in the Airport series: Airport 1975
and Airport '77
. He was also responsible for the eerie score for Horror Express
, a film starring Christopher Lee
and Peter Cushing
. Scoring music for the 1981 television movie Hellinger's Lawhttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082512/ reunited him with Kojak veteran Telly Savalas
.
More recently, he wrote the theme song for the 2005 video game Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories
. The song, "March Popakov Remix", was sampled by DJ Danger Mouse and is used frequently in the game.
Cacavas recently published his autobiography
, entitled It's More than Do-Re-Mi: My Life in Music. He lives in Beverly Hills, California and London, England with his wife, Bonetta Becker Cacavas and is an accomplished chef. They have three grown children, Lisa, John and Jennifer, and three grandchildren, James Stewart, Eric and Alexander Cacavas.
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
and conductor
Conducting
Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...
probably best known for his television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
scores, notably Kojak
Kojak
Kojak is an American television series starring Telly Savalas as the title character, bald New York City Police Department Detective Lieutenant Theo Kojak. It aired from October 24, 1973, to March 18, 1978, on CBS. It took the time slot of the popular Cannon series, which was moved one hour earlier...
, for which he was the chief composer, and for which he composed the second main title theme, used throughout the show's 5th and final season. The somewhat more well-known first Kojak theme, in two distinct arrangements, however, is not by Cacavas, but rather the work of Billy Goldenberg
Billy Goldenberg
William Leon "Billy" Goldenberg is an American composer most known for his work on television and film....
, who scored the early episodes. Cacavas's television credits also include Hawaii Five-O
Hawaii Five-O
Hawaii Five-O is an American police procedural drama series produced by CBS Productions and Leonard Freeman. Set in Hawaii, the show originally aired for twelve seasons from 1968 to 1980, and continues in reruns. The show featured a fictional state police unit run by Detective Steve McGarrett,...
, The Bionic Woman
The Bionic Woman
The Bionic Woman is an American television series starring Lindsay Wagner that aired for three seasons between 1976 and 1978 as a spin off from The Six Million Dollar Man. Wagner stars as tennis pro Jaime Sommers who is nearly killed in a skydiving accident. Sommers' life is saved by Oscar Goldman ...
, Mrs. Columbo, and Buck Rogers in the 25th Century
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (TV series)
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century is an American science fiction adventure television series produced by Universal Studios. The series ran for two seasons between 1979–1981, and the feature-length pilot episode for the series was released as a theatrical film several months before the series aired....
. While he has extensive credits in television series and television movie
Television movie
A television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
s, such as Perfect Murder, Perfect Town
Perfect Murder, Perfect Town
Perfect Murder, Perfect Town is a 2000 American television miniseries directed by Lawrence Schiller. The teleplay by Tom Topor is based on Schiller's book of the same title....
, he has comparatively few credits for film score
Film score
A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film, forming part of the film's soundtrack, which also usually includes dialogue and sound effects...
s, most notably two entries in the Airport series: Airport 1975
Airport 1975
Airport 1975 is a 1974 disaster film and the first sequel to the successful 1970 film Airport. It stars Charlton Heston and Karen Black and is directed by Jack Smight....
and Airport '77
Airport '77
Airport '77 is a 1977 disaster film and second sequel in the Airport franchise.The film stars a number of veteran actors, including Jack Lemmon, James Stewart, Joseph Cotten, Christopher Lee and Olivia de Havilland. Like its predecessors, Airport '77 was a box office hit earning US$30 million and...
. He was also responsible for the eerie score for Horror Express
Horror Express
Horror Express, also known as Pánico en el Transiberiano/Panic on the Trans-Siberian Express, is a 1972 Spanish horror film directed by Eugenio Martin, produced by Bernard Gordon written by Arnaud d'Usseau and Julian Zimet , and starring Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing and Telly Savalas.The film is...
, a film starring Christopher Lee
Christopher Lee
Sir Christopher Frank Carandini Lee, CBE, CStJ is an English actor and musician. Lee initially portrayed villains and became famous for his role as Count Dracula in a string of Hammer Horror films...
and Peter Cushing
Peter Cushing
Peter Wilton Cushing, OBE was an English actor, known for his many appearances in Hammer Films, in which he played the handsome but sinister scientist Baron Frankenstein and the vampire hunter Dr. Van Helsing, amongst many other roles, often appearing opposite Christopher Lee, and occasionally...
. Scoring music for the 1981 television movie Hellinger's Lawhttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082512/ reunited him with Kojak veteran Telly Savalas
Telly Savalas
Aristotelis "Telly" Savalas was an American film and television actor and singer, whose career spanned four decades. Best known for playing the title role in the 1970s crime drama Kojak, Savalas was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in Birdman of Alcatraz...
.
More recently, he wrote the theme song for the 2005 video game Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories
Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories
Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories is a 2005 sandbox-style action video game developed by Rockstar North and Rockstar Leeds. It is the ninth game in the Grand Theft Auto series...
. The song, "March Popakov Remix", was sampled by DJ Danger Mouse and is used frequently in the game.
Cacavas recently published his autobiography
Autobiography
An autobiography is a book about the life of a person, written by that person.-Origin of the term:...
, entitled It's More than Do-Re-Mi: My Life in Music. He lives in Beverly Hills, California and London, England with his wife, Bonetta Becker Cacavas and is an accomplished chef. They have three grown children, Lisa, John and Jennifer, and three grandchildren, James Stewart, Eric and Alexander Cacavas.