Music by: Henry Mancini

A film by Jörg Bundschuh

Mancini´s songs "Moon River", "Days of Wine and Roses" and the "Pink Panther"-theme have made him famous all over the world. With more than 30 million records sold, 20 Grammy Awards, 18 Oscar Nominations and 4 Oscars he is probably the most popular film composer of all time – one of the very few who are known by name to a wide audience. For six years he was working for Universal Music Department, composing the scores for Horror and Science Fiction films, made arrangements for "The Glenn Miller" and "Benny Goodman Story". With his music to the TV series "Peter Gunn" he introduced a new era in film music.
Henry Mancini (born on April 16, 1924 in Cleveland, Ohio), who started as a jazz musician, Americanised film scoring, which up to then was strongly influenced by European symphonic music like Erich Wolfgang Korngold, Max Steiner, Franz Waxman, Dimitri Tiomkin and Miklos Rosza. He used modern recording technology, created new orchestrations, and developed the song score and a fresh, contemporary sound for various genres – from thrillers to filmmusicals, from comedies and melodramas to westerns and science fiction films.

Mancini does not believe in the theory that film music should pass unnoticed. He believes that it should be felt where it is supposed to. He has therefore given his autobiography the title "Did they mention the Music?"

With "Peter Gunn" Manicini´s career in Hollywood and as concert pianist began. Since then he has composed the music for more than 100 movies and TV series, working with directors like Orson Welles, Howard Hawks, Stanley Donen and – again and again – Blake Edwards.

Henry Mancini died shortly after completion of this portrait on June 14, 1994 in Beverly Hills, California.

Author and Director	Jörg Bundschuh
Director of Photography	Claus Gottschall
Sound Mixer	Reinhard Stergar
Narrator	Tony Thomas
Editor	Alexander Rupp
Music	Henry Mancini
Co-Producer	Roland Johannes (WDR)
Producer	Jörg Bundschuh

A Kick Film production in coproduction with WDR