Leo F. Forbstein
Encyclopedia
Leo F. Forbstein was an American film
musical director
and orchestra conductor
who worked on more than 550 projects during a twenty-year period.
, Forbstein was attracted to music as a child, learning the violin
at the age of four. As a conductor at the Royal Theater in St. Joseph, he synchronized
the orchestra with the action in silent film
s; he then became principal conductor at the Newman Theatre in Kansas City
, where the organist was future Warner Bros.
colleague Carl W. Stalling. In the mid-1920s, Forbstein relocated to Hollywood to head the symphony
orchestra
at Grauman's Egyptian Theatre
.
as one of the directors of its Vitaphone Orchestra, alongside Erno Rapee
(then Warners' general music director), Louis Silvers
, and David Mendoza
; Forbstein's first screen credit was The Squall in 1929. In 1931, Warners dismissed Rapee and Mendoza in a consolidation and economy move and Forbstein became the company's general music director.
Erich Wolfgang Korngold
were write-in candidates for the Oscar for Best Music, Score for their work on Captain Blood. The following year he was nominated officially for The Charge of the Light Brigade
and Anthony Adverse
, winning for the latter. He was nominated again for The Life of Emile Zola
in 1938.
. They had one daughter, Harriet. He was entombed in the Corridor of Immortality at Home of Peace Cemetery
.
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
musical director
Music supervision
A music supervisor is an individual who combines music and visual media. In the musical theatre industry, a music supervisor is often responsible for managing a team of music directors working on any number of musical productions.-Description:...
and orchestra 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...
who worked on more than 550 projects during a twenty-year period.
Early years
Born in St. Louis, MissouriSt. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
, Forbstein was attracted to music as a child, learning the violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
at the age of four. As a conductor at the Royal Theater in St. Joseph, he synchronized
Synchronization
Synchronization is timekeeping which requires the coordination of events to operate a system in unison. The familiar conductor of an orchestra serves to keep the orchestra in time....
the orchestra with the action in silent film
Silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
s; he then became principal conductor at the Newman Theatre in Kansas City
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
, where the organist was future Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
colleague Carl W. Stalling. In the mid-1920s, Forbstein relocated to Hollywood to head the symphony
Symphony
A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, scored almost always for orchestra. A symphony usually contains at least one movement or episode composed according to the sonata principle...
orchestra
Orchestra
An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
at Grauman's Egyptian Theatre
Grauman's Egyptian Theatre
Grauman's Egyptian Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California, is one of the world's most famous movie theatres. Opened in 1922, it was the venue for the first-ever Hollywood premiere.- History :...
.
Joins Warner Bros.
He soon signed with Warner Bros.Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
as one of the directors of its Vitaphone Orchestra, alongside Erno Rapee
Erno Rapee
Ernö Rapée was one of the most prolific American symphonic conductors in the first half of the 20th Century...
(then Warners' general music director), Louis Silvers
Louis Silvers
Louis "Lou" Silvers was an American film score composer whose work has been used in more than 250 movies. In 1935, he won an Academy Award for Best Original Score for One Night of Love.-Early life and career:...
, and David Mendoza
Davíd Mendoza
David Bernardo Mendoza is a Paraguayan football defender who currently plays for Cerro Porteño.-External links:...
; Forbstein's first screen credit was The Squall in 1929. In 1931, Warners dismissed Rapee and Mendoza in a consolidation and economy move and Forbstein became the company's general music director.
Oscars and Oscar Nominations
In 1936, Forbstein and composerComposer
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...
Erich Wolfgang Korngold
Erich Wolfgang Korngold
Erich Wolfgang Korngold was an Austro-Hungarian film and romantic music composer. While his compositional style was considered well out of vogue at the time he died, his music has more recently undergone a reevaluation and a gradual reawakening of interest...
were write-in candidates for the Oscar for Best Music, Score for their work on Captain Blood. The following year he was nominated officially for The Charge of the Light Brigade
The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936 film)
The Charge of the Light Brigade is a 1936 historical film made by Warner Bros. It was directed by Michael Curtiz and produced by Samuel Bischoff, with Hal B. Wallis as executive producer, from a screenplay by Michael Jacoby and Rowland Leigh, from a story by Michael Jacoby based on the poem The...
and Anthony Adverse
Anthony Adverse
Anthony Adverse is a 1936 American drama film directed by Mervyn LeRoy. The screenplay by Sheridan Gibney is based on the sprawling 1,224-page novel of the same title by Hervey Allen.-Plot:...
, winning for the latter. He was nominated again for The Life of Emile Zola
The Life of Emile Zola
The Life of Emile Zola is a 1937 American biographical film about French author Émile Zola. Set in the mid through late 19th century, it depicts his friendship with noted painter Paul Cézanne, and his rise to fame through his prolific writing, with particular focus on his involvement in the Dreyfus...
in 1938.
Personal life
Forbstein was married to the former Bess Gallas from October 16, 1914 until his death from a heart attack in Los Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
. They had one daughter, Harriet. He was entombed in the Corridor of Immortality at Home of Peace Cemetery
Home of Peace Cemetery
The Home of Peace Cemetery is a Jewish cemetery located at 4334 Whittier Boulevard west of Interstate 710 in East Los Angeles, California.The cemetery is located across from Calvary Catholic Cemetery and next to Beth Israel Cemetery and Mount Zion Cemetery .There are a number of famous rabbis...
.
Film credits
- The Maltese FalconThe Maltese Falcon (1931 film)The Maltese Falcon is a 1931 American Warner Bros. Pre-Code crime film based on the novel of the same name by Dashiell Hammett. The movie was directed by Roy Del Ruth and stars Bebe Daniels in the role of Ruth Wonderly and Ricardo Cortez as private detective Sam Spade.Maude Fulton, Brown Holmes,...
(1931) - The MillionaireThe Millionaire (1931 film)The Millionaire is a 1931 comedy film starring George Arliss in the title role. The film is a remake of the 1922 film called The Ruling Passion, which also starred Arliss. The film was based on the short story "Idle Hands" by Earl Derr Biggers...
(1931) - The Star WitnessThe Star WitnessThe Star Witness is a feature film directed by William A. Wellman. It is a crime drama about a family that witness a crime and now have the gang members after them to prevent them from being witnesses....
(1931) - Union DepotUnion Depot (film)Union Depot is a Pre-Code film starring Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. and Joan Blondell, directed by Alfred E. Green for Warner Brothers, and based upon an unpublished play by Joe Laurie, Jr., Gene Fowler, and Douglas Durkin....
(1932) - The Man Who Played GodThe Man Who Played GodThe Man Who Played God is a 1932 American drama film directed by John G. Adolfi. The screenplay by Julien Josephson and Maude T. Howell is based on the 1914 play The Silent Voice by Jules Eckert Goodman, who adapted it from a story by Gouverneur Morris....
(1932) - The Cabin in the CottonThe Cabin in the CottonThe Cabin in the Cotton is a 1932 American drama film directed by Michael Curtiz. The screenplay by Paul Green is based on the novel of the same title by Harry Harrison Kroll....
(1932) - I Am a Fugitive from a Chain GangI Am a Fugitive from a Chain GangI Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang is a Pre-Code crime/drama film starring Paul Muni as a wrongfully convicted convict on a chain gang who escapes to Chicago. The film was written by Howard J. Green and Brown Holmes from Robert Elliott Burns's autobiography, I Am a Fugitive from a Georgia Chain...
(1932) - 42nd Street42nd Street (film)-Cast:*Warner Baxter as Julian Marsh, director*Bebe Daniels as Dorothy Brock, star*George Brent as Pat Denning, Dorothy's old vaudeville partner*Ruby Keeler as Peggy Sawyer, the newcomer*Guy Kibbee as Abner Dillon, the show's backer...
(1933) - Gold Diggers of 1933Gold Diggers of 1933Gold Diggers of 1933 is a pre-code Warner Bros. musical film directed by Mervyn LeRoy with songs by Harry Warren and Al Dubin , staged and choreographed by Busby Berkeley...
(1933) - The Working ManThe Working ManThe Working Man is a 1933 American comedy film directed by John G. Adolfi. The screenplay by Charles Kenyon and Maude T. Howell is based on the story The Adopted Father by Edgar Franklin.-Plot:...
(1933) - Ex-LadyEx-LadyEx-Lady is a 1933 American comedy film directed by Robert Florey. The screenplay by David Boehm is based on an unproduced play by Edith Fitzgerald and Robert Riskin.-Plot:...
(1933) - Bureau of Missing PersonsBureau of Missing PersonsBureau of Missing Persons is a 1933 American drama film with comic overtones directed by Roy Del Ruth. The screenplay by Robert Presnell is based on a story by Carol Bird adapted from the book Missing Men by former New York City police captain John H...
(1933) - Fog Over FriscoFog Over FriscoFog Over Frisco is a 1934 American drama film directed by William Dieterle. The screenplay by Robert N. Lee and Eugene Solow was based on the short story The Five Fragments by George Dyer.-Plot:...
(1934) - The Big ShakedownThe Big ShakedownThe Big Shakedown is a 1934 American drama film starring Charles Farrell and Bette Davis and directed by John Francis Dillon. The screenplay by Rian James and Niven Busch is based on the story Cut Rate by Busch and Samuel G. Engel. The supporting cast includes Ricardo Cortez and Glenda...
(1934) - Jimmy the GentJimmy the Gent (film)Jimmy the Gent is a 1934 American comedy-drama film directed by Michael Curtiz and starring James Cagney and Bette Davis. The screenplay by Bertram Millhauser was based on The Heir Chaser by Ray Nazarro and Laird Doyle....
(1934) - Fashions of 1934Fashions of 1934-Cast:*William Powell as Sherwood Nash*Bette Davis as Lynn Mason*Frank McHugh as Snap*Reginald Owen as Oscar Baroque*Verree Teasdale as Grand Duchess Alix*Hugh Herbert as Joe Ward*Henry O'Neill as Duryea...
(1934) - Front Page WomanFront Page WomanFront Page Woman is a 1935 American comedy film directed by Michael Curtiz. The screenplay by Roy Chanslor, Laird Doyle, and Lillie Hayward is based on the novel Women Are Bum Newspapermen by Richard Macauley.-Plot:...
(1935) - The Girl from 10th AvenueThe Girl from 10th AvenueThe Girl from 10th Avenue is a 1935 American drama film directed by Alfred E. Green. The screenplay by Charles Kenyon is based on the 1914 play Outcast by Hubert Henry Davies...
(1935) - Special Agent (1935)
- The Golden ArrowThe Golden ArrowThe Golden Arrow is a 1936 American comedy film directed by Alfred E. Green. The screenplay by Charles Kenyon is based on a story of the same title by Michael Arlen published in the September 14, 1935 issue of Liberty...
(1936) - It's Love I'm AfterIt's Love I'm AfterIt's Love I'm After is a 1937 American comedy film directed by Archie Mayo. The screenplay by Casey Robinson is based on the story Gentlemen After Midnight by Maurice Hanline...
(1937) - Jezebel (1938)
- Dark VictoryDark VictoryDark Victory is a 1939 American drama film directed by Edmund Goulding and starring Bette Davis, George Brent, Humphrey Bogart, and Ronald Reagan...
(1939) - The Private Lives of Elizabeth and EssexThe Private Lives of Elizabeth and EssexThe Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex is a 1939 historical romantic drama film. It is based on the relationship between Queen Elizabeth I, portrayed by Bette Davis, and Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, played by Errol Flynn...
(1939) - The Letter (1940)The Letter (1940 film)The Letter is a 1940 American film noir directed by William Wyler. The screenplay by Howard Koch is based on the 1927 play of the same name by W. Somerset Maugham, originally filmed in 1929.-Plot:...
(1940) - Meet John DoeMeet John DoeMeet John Doe is a 1941 American comedy drama film directed and produced by Frank Capra, and starring Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck. The film is about a "grassroots" political campaign created unwittingly by a newspaper columnist and pursued by a wealthy businessman. It became a box office hit...
(1941) - Sergeant YorkSergeant YorkSergeant York is a 1941 biographical film about the life of Alvin York, the most-decorated American soldier of World War I. It was directed by Howard Hawks and was the highest-grossing film of the year....
(1941) - The Maltese FalconThe Maltese Falcon (1941 film)The Maltese Falcon is a 1941 Warner Bros. film based on the novel of the same name by Dashiell Hammett and a remake of the 1931 film of the same name...
(1941) - Kings RowKings RowKings Row is a 1942 film starring Ann Sheridan, Robert Cummings, and Ronald Reagan that tells a story of young people growing up in a small American town at the turn of the twentieth century, beset by social pressure, dark secrets, and the challenges and tragedies one must face as a result of these...
(1942) - Yankee Doodle DandyYankee Doodle DandyYankee Doodle Dandy is a 1942 American biographical musical film about George M. Cohan, known as "The Man Who Owns Broadway". It stars James Cagney, Joan Leslie, Walter Huston, and Richard Whorf, and features Irene Manning, George Tobias, Rosemary DeCamp and Jeanne Cagney.The movie was written by...
(1942) - Now, VoyagerNow, VoyagerNow, Voyager is a 1942 American drama film starring Bette Davis, Paul Henreid, and Claude Rains, and directed by Irving Rapper. The screenplay by Casey Robinson is based on the 1941 novel of the same name by Olive Higgins Prouty....
(1942) - CasablancaCasablanca (film)Casablanca is a 1942 American romantic drama film directed by Michael Curtiz, starring Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman and Paul Henreid, and featuring Claude Rains, Conrad Veidt, Sydney Greenstreet, Peter Lorre and Dooley Wilson. Set during World War II, it focuses on a man torn between, in...
(1942) - Destination TokyoDestination TokyoDestination Tokyo is a 1943 submarine war film. It was directed by Delmer Daves and written by Daves, Steve Fisher and Albert Maltz, and stars Cary Grant and John Garfield with featured performances by Dane Clark, Robert Hutton and Warner Anderson. Production began on June 21, 1943 and continued...
(1943) - Mr. SkeffingtonMr. SkeffingtonMr. Skeffington is a 1944 American drama film directed by Vincent Sherman, based on the novel of the same name by Elizabeth von Arnim.The film stars Bette Davis as a beautiful woman whose many suitors, and self-love, distract her from returning the affections of her husband, Job Skeffington...
(1944) - To Have and Have NotTo Have and Have NotTo Have and Have Not is a 1937 novel by Ernest Hemingway about Harry Morgan, a fishing boat captain who lives with a prostitute and runs contraband between Cuba and Florida. The novel depicts Harry as an essentially good man who is forced into blackmarket activity by economic forces beyond his...
(1944) - The Corn Is GreenThe Corn is GreenThe Corn Is Green is a semi-autobiographical play by Emlyn Williams.At its core is L. C. Moffat, a strong-willed English school teacher working in a small poverty-stricken coal mining town in the late 19th century...
(1945) - Mildred PierceMildred Pierce (film)Mildred Pierce is a 1945 American drama film starring Joan Crawford, Ann Blyth, Jack Carson, Zachary Scott, and Eve Arden in a film noir about a long-suffering mother and her ungrateful daughter. The screenplay by Ranald MacDougall, William Faulkner, and Catherine Turney was based upon the 1941...
(1945) - The Big SleepThe Big Sleep (1946 film)The Big Sleep is a 1946 film noir directed by Howard Hawks, the first film version of Raymond Chandler's 1939 novel of the same name. The movie stars Humphrey Bogart as detective Philip Marlowe and Lauren Bacall as the female lead in a film about the "process of a criminal investigation, not its...
(1946) - The Treasure of the Sierra MadreThe Treasure of the Sierra Madre (film)The Treasure of the Sierra Madre is a 1948 American film written and directed by John Huston, a feature film adaptation of B. Traven's 1927 novel of the same name, in which two Americans Fred C. Dobbs and Bob Curtin during the 1920s in Mexico join with an old-timer, Howard , to prospect for gold...
(1948) - Winter MeetingWinter MeetingWinter Meeting is a 1948 American drama film directed by Bretaigne Windust. The screenplay by Catherine Turney is based on the novel of the same title by Grace Zaring Stone, writing under the pseudonym Ethel Vance.-Synopsis:...
(1948) - RopeRope (film)Rope is a 1948 American thriller film based on the play Rope by Patrick Hamilton and adapted by Hume Cronyn and Arthur Laurents, directed by Alfred Hitchcock and produced by Sidney Bernstein and Hitchcock as the first of their Transatlantic Pictures productions...
(1948) - Johnny BelindaJohnny Belinda (1948 film)Johnny Belinda is a 1948 American drama film based on the play of the same name by Elmer Blaney Harris. The movie was adapted to the screen by Allen Vincent and Irma von Cube, and directed by Jean Negulesco....
(1948)