John Williams

February 8, 1932

John Williams is one of the most popular and successful American composers today having written scores for countless movies including many iconic science fiction and fantasy films.

Born in New York, Williams studied music composition at UCLA before being drafted into the Air Force. After serving, Williams studied at Julliard School, then in the 1960s he returned to the West Coast to compose music for the film industry. He started as a composer for television programs and eventually wrote the score for Steven Spielberg’s The Sugarland Express in 1974. Williams would compose scores for many of Spielberg's science fiction and fantasy films including Close Encounters of the Third Kind (197, the Indiana Jones series (1981–2008), E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982), the Jurassic Park trilogy (1993–2001), and A.I.: Artificial Intelligence (2001).

Williams has also composed scores for other iconic science fiction and fantasy movies including the Star Wars trilogy for director George Lucas as well as the first three films of the Harry Potter series. In addition to being a composer, Williams is an established conductor. From 1980 to 1993, he acted as the conductor for the Boston Pops Orchestra.

Williams has won 5 Academy Awards, 17 Grammys, 3 Golden Globes, 2 Emmys, and 5 BAFTA Awards from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts.