# RIP Composer Shirley Walker



## Johnny Thunder (Feb 24, 2006)

*Composer Shirley Walker Is Gone*

ScoreKeeper here with sad news. Veteran film and television composer Shirley Walker passed away Wednesday evening after suffering a brain aneurism. She was 61.

Shirley Walker is probably most well-known for her scoring contributions to the television series "Batman: The Animated Series" (1992-95), "Superman: The Animated Series" (1996-00), "The New Batman Adventures" (1997-99) and "Batman Beyond" (1999-01) as well as her outstanding original film scores for MEMOIRS OF AN INVISIBLE MAN (1992), BATMAN: MASK OF THE PHANTASM (1993), ESCAPE FROM L.A. (1996), FINAL DESTINATION (2000), FINAL DESTINATION 2 (2003), WILLARD (2003), and FINAL DESTINATION 3 (2006).

Shirley had a long relationship with Danny Elfman serving as his conductor for SCROOGED (1988), BATMAN (1989), NIGHTBREED (1990), DICK TRACY (1990), EDWARD SCISSORHANDS (1990) and ARTICLE 99 (1992).

She also worked extensively with Hans Zimmer as both an orchestrator and conductor on a host of his films including BLACK RAIN (1989), BIRD ON A WIRE (1990), PACIFIC HEIGHTS (1990), BACKDRAFT (1991), TOYS (1992), A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN (1992) as well as TRUE LIES (1994) and JOHNNY MNEMONIC (1995) for Brad Fiedel.

In an industry dominated by men, Shirley helped open doors for women in film music. Her influence was strong and will not be forgotten.

We here at AICN would like to extend our condolences to Shirley's family and friends during this difficult time. She will surely be missed.


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## Spooklights (Jul 4, 2006)

Wow, that's quite a list of shows and films she racked up. And a conductor too? I'm impressed. 
Your article is right, JT. I went to college for music and the guys outnumbered the girls by a vast majority, especially when it came to subjects like composition and conducting. Look at any symphony or pops orchestra, and what do you see on the stage? Mostly guys. Ms. Walker must have really had some talent in order to get so far. More power to her, and I'm sorry to see that she's gone.


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