Wikipedia:
Bronisław Kaper, also Bronislau or Bronislaus Kaper, pseudonyms Benjamin Kapper and Hans Mühlen, (born February 5, 1902 in Warsaw, Russian Empire; † April 26, 1983 in Hollywood, Los Angeles) was a Polish-American composer of film scores and popular songs.
Bronisław Kaper was probably born in Warsaw in 1902. Today, we can only speculate about his year of birth, as no records exist, nor did Kaper himself know his exact date of birth during his lifetime. The fact is that in 1908, at the age of six, Kaper was able to play the piano and was considered a child prodigy in Poland. In his teenage years, Kaper was already writing his own compositions and subsequently studied at the Warsaw Conservatory of Music. To satisfy his father, who wanted his son to have a profitable career, Kaper studied law at the same time.
In the 1920s and 1930s, Kaper wrote songs which he presented in England, France and Germany. In Berlin he completed his musical education with Moritz Mayer-Mahr and Walther Gmeindl. Under the pseudonym Benjamin Kapper he also composed for German feature films and conducted his works. Mostly together with Walter Jurmann, Kaper created numerous pieces for the dance orchestras of the time: Jurmann composed, Kaper provided the arrangements.
In 1933, after the Nazis seized power, Kaper fled to France as a Jew and worked for French directors. In 1935, MGM head Louis B. Mayer in Paris became aware of Kaper's song ''Ninon'' also written with Jurmann for the film ''Ein Lied für Dich''. Mayer brought Kaper to America that same year. The mistake that led to Kaper's untypical first name occurred during his naturalization in the USA. The responsible official read a u in place of the w and so Bronisław Kaper became Bronislau Kaper. It should be noted that there is no Slavic name Bronislau. In contrast to his later works, Kaper began in the United States as a songwriter, providing soundtracks for several films. He has written over 150 musical compositions. On Green Dolphin Street, which he wrote with Ned Washington as a film song in 1947, became a jazz standard.
In the course of his four decades of work, Kaper was nominated three times for an Oscar in the category of Best Film Score and once in the category of Best Song. Once, in 1954, for ''Hi-Lili, Hi-Lo'' from the film romance ''Lili'', he was able to accept the gold statue. Another of Kaper's well-known feature films was ''Mutiny on the Bounty'' from 1962, for which he was nominated in both categories (film music/song). Kaper wrote a well-known theme song for the television series FBI with Efrem Zimbalist Jr.
Kaper witnessed how the glamour of the old Hollywood film faded, and thus he received fewer and fewer offers. After his last work for the film ''The Salzburg Connection'' (1972) was not mentioned in the film credits, he retired completely to private life.
Bronisław Kaper, who was neither married nor had children, succumbed to cancer at the age of 81.
Note: Translated from a German version of Wikipedia into English.
