Alf Clausen, who scored The Simpsons for 27 years, has died at 84 after an eight-year battle with a rare brain disorder. The composer died at his home in Los Angeles on Thursday, according to his daughter, Kaarin Clausen. He was diagnosed with progressive supranuclear palsy around eight years ago, which is a brain disorder that causes behavioral and cognitive issues. Clausen scored many songs for the Fox animated show, garnering him 23 Emmy nominations and two wins with lyricist Ken Keeler for “We Put the Spring in Springfield” and “You’re Checkin’ In (A Musical Tribute to the Betty Ford Center),” in 1997 and ‘98 respectively. In a 2015 interview, Clausen recalled being hesitant to score the show at first, saying at the time that he wanted to be a drama composer. But the 30-time Emmy nominated composer decided to join after The Simpsons creator, Matt Groening, said that the show wasn’t a cartoon, but “a drama where the characters are drawn.” Clausen’s partnership with the series came to a messy end when he was let go in 2017, the composer filing a lawsuit against Disney and its Fox divisions for his unjust termination. Clausen ultimately settled in 2022.
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