AN ICON who worked on the beloved animated comedy series, The Simpsons, for 27 years has died.
Veteran composer, Alf Clausen, who scored for the hit show, has died at the age of 84 following an illness.
The Emmy winner died on Thursday, May 29 at his Valley Village home in Los Angeles.
Clausen was diagnosed with Progressive Supranuclear Palsy eight years ago.
He joined The Simpsons from the second series in 1990 and continued working on the show until its 28th season in 2017.
He was a driving force behind some of the show’s most memorable songs and, alongside lyricist Ken Keeler, earned Emmy awards in 1997 for the tracks We Put the Spring in Springfield and You’re Checkin’ In (A Musical Tribute to the Betty Ford Center).
Clausen’s first break as a TV composer came in 1985 on the show Moonlighting starring Bruce Willis and Cybill Shepherd.
He also started composing on ALF, the 80s sitcom, during this period.
But when offered the opportunity to work on The Simpsons he was initially reluctant to work on the show, preferring film.
He was nominated for another 21 Emmys for his work on the programme.
He was nominated for a total of 30 throughout his career.
Although Clausen didn’t create the main theme music for The Simpsons, his work frequently incorporated that score, and he took on the task of rearranging and re-recording the theme during his tenure with the show.
In August 2019, Clausen filed a lawsuit against both Disney and Fox following his dismissal from the animated series.
He alleged his dismissal owed to his age and medical conditions but Disney lawyers managed to get this aspect of the case dismissed in 2020.
Clausen continued with other elements of his claim including wrongful discharge and retaliation.
He resolved the matter after reaching a settlement with Fox in February 2022.
