Who composed the Paramount Pictures fanfare used from 1976 through 2011?

Jerry Goldsmith (February 1929 – July 2004) was the composer and conductor who composed the Paramount Pictures fanfare used from 1976 through 2011. Besides this accomplishment, he was best known for substantial work in film and TV scoring. He composed scores for 5 films in the "Star Trek" franchise and 3 in the "Rambo" franchise, as well as for "Logan's Run", "Planet of the Apes", "Patton", "Chinatown", "Poltergeist", "Gremlins", "Hoosiers", "Total Recall", "Air Force One", "L.A. Confidential", "Mulan", and "The Mummy". In May 1997, with the release of "The Lost World: Jurassic Park", he gained greater popularity with his fanfare of the 1997 Universal Pictures opening logo.

Jerrald King ("Jerry") Goldsmith was born in Pasadena, CA; he grew up in Los Angeles. He intended to be a concert hall composer, but realized that this would never do. In 1950, he was employed as a clerk typist at CBS. Here, he got assignments as a composer for radio shows. This led to work on TV shows. In 1957, he composed his first film score for the Western "Black Patch".

In 1962, Goldsmith was awarded his first Oscar nomination for the film "Freud". He then became acquainted with film composer Alfred Newman, who, recognizing Goldsmith's talents, got Universal to hire him to score the film "Lonely Are The Brave" in 1963. After that job, Goldsmith established himself as a leading name in American film music.

Goldsmith died of cancer in 2004 in Beverly Hills, California. He was 75 years old.