James Bond songwriter Don Black to receive award at Thunderball 40th anniversary event...

Don Black To Receive Award
8th September 2005

Oscar-winning songwriter Don Black is to receive an award at the 40th anniversary of Thunderball event this November in London, UK.

The world-famous lyricist, who has penned over 100 songs for the movies - including Thunderball for composer John Barry - is being given an award by Cinema Retro magazine for his ‘Outstanding Contributions to Song Writing in the Motion Picture Industry’.

Don, who won an Oscar for Born Free and collaborated with John Barry on Out of Africa and Dances With Wolves, is responsible for penning five James Bond theme songs: Thunderball (1965), Diamonds Are Forever (1971), The Man With The Golden Gun (1974), Surrender from Tomorrow Never Dies (1997) and The World Is Not Enough (1999).

 

 

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Other celebrity guests who have confirmed include actresses Martine Beswicke and Mollie Peters, stuntman/actor George Leech, production designer Sir Ken Adam, actor Earl Cameron, and and sound editor Norman Wanstall - with more to be announced.

The Thunderball 40th Anniversary screening will be held at Cine Lumiere, London on Sunday November 20th 2005.

Click here for more information on how to attend this once-in-a-lifetime James Bond event and to book tickets.

About Don Black
Don Black has written over a hundred songs for motion pictures including The Italian Job, The Pink Panther Strikes Again, True Grit, Dances With Wolves, Out of Africa and a quintet of James Bond theme songs.

Don started out as a stand-up comedian and blames himself entirely for the death of Variety. He made his West End debut as a lyricist with composer John Barry on the musical Billy, starring Michael Crawford (Theatre Royal, Drury Lane).

Don received two Broadway Tony Awards for best book and best lyrics of a musical for his work on Sunset Boulevard. This marked his third theatrical collaboration with Andrew Lloyd Webber. They first joined forces to write the song cycle Tell Me On A Sunday, which was developed to form the basis for the stage show Song & Dance. They were reunited for Aspects of Love. Don also wrote the love duet Next Time You Fall In Love, for the re-vamped Starlight Express.

In a career that has won him many glittering prizes (an Oscar for his song Born Free, five Academy Award nominations, three Tony nominations, five Ivor Novello Awards, a Golden Globe and many platinum, gold and silver discs) he has worked with some of world's leading composers Jule Styne, Henry Mancini, Quincy Jones, Elmer Bernstein, Michel Legrand, Marvin Hamlisch, Charles Aznavour, etc. Among his many popular songs are Michael Jackson's Ben and Lulu's To Sir With Love, both U S. number one hits.

His most recent musicals are the Andrew Lloyd Webber produced Bombay Dreams which recently completed a two year London run and will soon start an American tour. Dracula, the musical he wrote with Christopher Hampton is currently playing in Europe. A biography, Wrestling With Elephants, was published last year by Sanctuary. He is currently working on a musical to be produced in Shanghai and is also working on a new version of Bar Mitzvah Boy, a musical he wrote with Jule Styne, for the Paper Mill Theatre in New Jersey

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