Lennie Niehaus, a prominent figure in the 1950s Los Angeles jazz scene and a longtime collaborator with his old Army buddy Clint Eastwood in films such as “Bird” and “Unforgiven,” died May 28 at his home in Redlands, Calif. He was 90.
Owen Sheeran, his son-in-law, confirmed the death. The cause was not disclosed.
In the 1950s, when jazz clubs dotted Los Angeles, Mr. Niehaus was a constant fixture on the scene, along with other fabled musicians, including Chet Baker, Hampton Hawes, Shorty Rogers and Bill Holman.
But it was on the road with the band of Stan Kenton that Mr. Niehaus earned national exposure as the bandleader’s vibrant alto saxophonist for years. When the crowds thinned out in the 1960s as rock took over the airwaves, Mr. Niehaus turned to Hollywood, and ultimately, Eastwood.
Leonard Niehaus was born June 11, 1929, in St. Louis and grew up in a musical family. His father played the violin, and his sister ultimately became a concert pianist. He took up the clarinet at 13 but put it aside in favor of the alto sax when he began listening to the infectious sounds of big-band jazz.
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Mr. Niehaus completed high school in Los Angeles and studied music at what is now California State University at Los Angeles, graduating with the school’s inaugural class in 1951.
Intent on making his way as a working musician, he joined Kenton’s band but had to quit when he was drafted into the Army. When he was discharged, he rejoined Kenton’s band for another five years, until it was clear the musical landscape was shifting.
“I put my horn away and started writing instead,” Mr. Niehaus told the Los Angeles Times in 2000.
Share this articleShareHe found steady work in Hollywood, writing scores for shows such as “Charlie’s Angels” and “McMillan & Wife.” His career blossomed when he reconnected with Eastwood, whom he met while they were stationed at Fort Ord in Northern California. They shared a love of jazz.
Starting with “Tightrope,” a 1984 slasher film set in New Orleans, the two forged a partnership that pushed into the next millennium. Mr. Niehaus was the composer for many projects directed by Eastwood, “Heartbreak Ridge,” “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil,” “The Bridges of Madison County,” “Mystic River,” “Million Dollar Baby,” “Letters From Iwo Jima” and “Gran Torino.”
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The film that may have resonated the deepest was the 1988 biopic “Bird,” about jazz saxophonist Charlie “Bird” Parker. Mr. Niehaus created new musical backgrounds for Parker’s classic solos and instructed the film’s star, Forest Whitaker, on how to play the alto saxophone.
Mr. Niehaus won an Emmy Award for composition for the 1993 TV movie “Lush Life,” with Whitaker and Jeff Goldblum. His final film project with Eastwood was for 2011’s “J. Edgar,” a biopic about former FBI director J. Edgar Hoover.
“Lennie is great because when a movie dictates something simple, he’ll keep it simple or make it complicated when it demands it,” Eastwood told the Times in 1998. “He’s so versatile and smart about the relationship of the music to the movie that I’ve used him on almost every project I’ve done.”
Mr. Niehaus later organized a Carnegie Hall concert, eventually released as a live album, that paid tribute to Eastwood’s film legacy. He also continued to play his saxophone on occasional recordings and in appearances at clubs and other venues, including a bookstore near his home in Southern California.
“It’s just what I do,” he said.
Survivors include his wife, Patricia; a daughter; and two grandchildren.
— Los Angeles Times
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