---
name: "David Raksin"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/david-raksin"
roles: ["Composer"]
born: "4 August 1912"
died: "9 August 2004"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 1
updated: "2026-09-16T12:13:52.505972+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# David Raksin

Composer. Born 4 August 1912 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. Died 9 August 2004.

## Details

- **Work:** Composer
- **Born:** 4 August 1912, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
- **Died:** 9 August 2004

## Biography

David Raksin was an American composer of film and television scores. Born in Philadelphia, he studied at the University of Pennsylvania and worked as an arranger in New York before moving to Hollywood in the mid-1930s. His early film work included assisting Charlie Chaplin on the score for *Modern Times* (1936).

Raksin is best known for his score for *Laura* (1944), whose main theme, with lyrics added by Johnny Mercer, became a major popular hit. He composed more than 100 film scores, including those for *The Bad and the Beautiful* (1952) and *Separate Tables* (1958), the latter two earning Academy Award nominations, as well as numerous television scores.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, latimes.com, nytimes.com.*

## On Fi1m (1)

- *Laura* (1944), Fi1m 86, Music — [page](https://film.one/film/laura.md)

## Also known for

- *Modern Times* (1936), Music Arranger — [page](https://film.one/film/modern-times.md)
- *The Day After* (1983), Original Music Composer
- *The Bad and the Beautiful* (1952), Original Music Composer, Conductor, Orchestrator
- *Bigger Than Life* (1956), Original Music Composer
- *The Big Combo* (1955), Music
- *Scorpio Rising* (1964), Music
- *Apache* (1954), Original Music Composer
- *Force of Evil* (1950), Music

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/david-raksin