Leigh Harline
Leigh Adrian Harline was an Academy Award-winning film composer and songwriter. He was born on 26 March 1907, in Salt Lake City, Utah. He was the son of soldier Charles Härlin and Jahanna Matilda Härlin. He was the youngest of 13 children. His parents came from the village of Härfsta in Simtuna parish, Sweden. They were baptized members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1888, and moved to Salt Lake City, Utah in 1891. Once in the United States, they changed their surname to Harline. Leigh was baptized a member of the Church at age eight.
He attended Granite High School in Salt Lake City, Utah, and later studied at the University of Utah. After graduating from the University of Utah, he studied piano and organ with Mormon Tabernacle Choir conductor, J. Spencer Cornwall.
In 1928, he moved to California and worked as a composer, conductor, arranger, instrumentalist, singer, and announcer at radio stations in San Francisco and Los Angeles. He arranged music for the first transcontinental radio broadcast to originate from the West Coast in 1931, and was then hired by Walt Disney in 1932, where he scored over 50 tunes, including tunes for the Silly Symphonies cartoon series in the 1930s. He became well known for his “musical sophistication that was uniquely ‘Harline-esque’ by weaving rich tapestries of mood-setting underscores and penning memorable melodies for animated shorts and features.”
He won the Academy Award for Best Original Music Score and the Academy Award for Best Original Song for “When You Wish Upon a Star,” featured in Disney’s classic film Pinocchio (1940). The tune later became the theme song for the Disney television series, The Wonderful World of Disney.
Leigh worked with Frank Churchill, Larry Morey, and Paul J. Smith on such Disney film tunes as “I’m Wishing,” “Whistle While You Work,” “Heigh-Ho,” and “Some Day My Prince Will Come” in Disney studio’s first animated feature-length cartoon Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in 1937.
In 1940 he joined the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP). In 1941, he left Disney to compose for other studios. His impeccable list of credits includes Road to Utopia (1945), Nocturne (1946), The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer (1947), The Boy with Green Hair (1948), Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House (1948), Monkey Business (1952), The Desert Rats (1953), Good Morning, Miss Dove (1955), 23 Paces to Baker Street (1956), Ten North Frederick (1958), The Remarkable Mr. Pennypacker (1959), The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm (1962), and 7 Faces of Dr. Lao (1964).
Leigh was also nominated for Academy Award for Best Original Musical (1943, 1944). He received his first Oscar nomination for “Someday My Prince Will Come.” He was nominated for Oscars for scoring The Pride of the Yankees, Johnny Come Lately, and The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm. He also composed for television, including series Ben Casey and Disney’s Daniel Boone. His other popular song compositions include “Hi-Diddle-Dee-Dee,” “Give a Little Whistle,” and “Jiminy Cricket.”
He died on 10 December 1969, in Long Beach, California, from complications from throat cancer, and is buried in Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery. He was inducted into the Disney Legends in 2001.
Follow Leigh Harline
Recent Posts
GENTRI – The Will of Soldier
GENTRI– the Gentlemen’s Trio – comprised of distinguished tenors Brad Robins, Casey Elliott, and Bradley Quinn Lever, was established in June 2014. Since their beginning, they have been entertaining audiences across the nation with their unique style of music that...
Kaylea Hix and Yahosh Bonner – “Like I’m Gonna Lose You”
This week’s “Video Find of the Week” features the vocal talents of two R&B and Pop Music fans, Yahosh Bonner and Kaylea Hix. In the featured video, they perform a flawless cover of Meghan Trainor’s song “Like I'm Gonna Lose You.” Yahosh Bonner comes from an...
Bored Shorts’ The Voice Video Featuring Madilyn Paige and Alex Boyé
The Utah based YouTube channel Bored Shorts TV is the official home of Kid Snippets, Senior Snippets, Kid Snippets News and Viral Videos, Kid History, Little Bigs, and more. The channel features four Utah dads – John, Dave, and Brett Roberts, and Richard Sharrah who...
Mormon Missionary Uses Power of Music to Teach Gospel to Anti-Mormon Congregation
The late Bruce R. McConkie, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1972 until his death in 1985, exhorted, ‘Music is given of God to further his purposes. Sweet melodies mellow the souls of men and help...
The Duttons – Big Family, Big Show
Dean and Sheila Dutton never imagined a career in the entertainment industry. Dean was a tenured professor of economics for 26 years, but he took an unexpected early retirement when the family’s performing career took off. He had played guitar and sousaphone as a...
Jenny Oaks Baker – Pinball Wizard (The Who Cover)
Pinball machines have been around for quite some time, and have evolved from a simple tabletop game, into highly impressive and challenging games. Many modern pinball machines include a story line where the player must complete certain objectives in a certain fashion...