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Composer Behind Secret Code in ‘Mission: Impossible’ Theme Dies at 93

Lalo Schifrin composed over 100 arrangements across film and television.

Lalo Schifrin, the Argentine composer responsible for the Mission: Impossible theme, died Thursday aged 93 due to complications from pneumonia, his son told CBS News. Schifrin’s catchy score, written in the unusual 5/4 time signature, hit No. 41 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1968 and won two Grammy Awards. In 2017, it was entered into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Though Schifrin never publicly confirmed it, fans noted that the theme resembles the Morse code for “M”and “I”, NME reported in 2023. In a 2006 interview with AP, Schifrin recalled being told to write “something exciting… like a logo.” He said, “Maybe that’s why this thing has become so successful—because I wrote something that came from inside me.” Schifrin composed more than 100 pieces for film and television. “His family was at his side, and he passed peacefully,” his son Ryan Schifrin said. “We are grateful for the opportunity to be there for him. We are still trying to process this loss, and are very moved by all the love and support we have received.”