Composer and Sound Editor John Strauss Dies at 90

On Broadway, Strauss provided orchestrations, as well as additional lyrics and music, to the 1956 show The Littlest Revue, and wrote a song for the 1965 musical Pickwick. In addition, he provided arrangements for the 1955 album Songs I Taught My Mother, which featured Charlotte Rae. The two were married until 1975, after which he became life partners with artist Lionel Friedman, who died in 2003.

Strauss’ work in movies and television resulted in an Emmy Award for sound editing for The Amazing Howard Hughes and a Grammy Award for best classical album for the soundtrack recording of Milos Forman’s Amadeus, on which Strauss served as music coordinator and provided the brief composition which the Count shows to Mozart. Strauss worked with Forman on three additional films: Hair, Ragtime, and Valmont.

Among Strauss’ other credits are the theme song for Car 54, Where Are You?, and he served as sound editor on early Woody Allen films, including Take the Money and Run, Bananas, and Every Thing You Always Wanted to Know About Sex ….

He is survived by his son as well as three grandchildren.