R.I.P. Neal Hefti & Edie Adams

Neil Hefti passed away a few days ago. You may not recognize his name right away, but you'd instantly recognize his music.  He wrote the theme to The Odd Couple, and more famously - the theme to the 1960's TV Batman. What a song! When the more “serious” Batman movies came out, I reluctantly accepted the new orchestral themes.  Though when I left the movie theater I was always humming, “na, na, na, na, na, na, na, na, Bat-maaaaaaan!”

Hefti's is the classic harrowing musician's story.  He left home two days before graduating high school to join a touring big band. He played trumpet, but found the most success in arranging and composing throughout all of his decades long career. The Grammy award winning Hefti arranged for such legends as Count Basie and Frank Sinatra, before moving back to California in the 60's to compose for the movie industry.

Last week we also lost Edie Adams. Ms. Adams was an accomplished singer with a killer comedic impression of Marilyn Monroe. She was married to a hero of mine – Ernie Kovacs, TV comedy pioneer. Kovacs had an unhappy first marriage, but was in bliss about his second to Edie. He commonly referred to her as FW – or “favorite wife”. 

We owe Adams a tremendous debt.  Not just for her own career, but after Kovacs' death she learned that his video library of landmark TV work was being erased and re-used by the networks where he had worked.  She personally rescued these important TV artifacts so we can still marvel at them today.  She is also rumored to have occasionally played one of the famous “Narobi Trio”, which gives you an idea of what a fun lady she must have been.

Wikipedia entry on Neal Hefti
Even more information about the Batman theme
Listen to the outstanding Batman album pictured above
Video of the Nairobi Trio in action

related:
DVD wishlist: 1960's Batman TV series
60's comedy legends in comic book form