Mischa Bakaleinikov


Mikhail Romanovich "Mischa" Bakaleinikov was a musical director, film composer and conductor.

Personal life

Brother to Constantin, Nikolay and Vladimir, Bakaleinikov was born in Moscow in 1890. He left the Soviet Union for the United States, travelling via Shanghai, China, to Los Angeles, in 1926, and joined Columbia Studios's music department in Hollywood in 1931.

Death

Bakaleinikoff was a member of a Masonic Lodge. At his funeral service in 1960, the music was played by a string ensemble from Columbia. He died at age 69, and was survived by his wife, Yvonne and their four children. He was previously married to actress Helen Gilbert.
He is buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale).

Career

Bakaleinikoff played the double bass viol in Columbia Studios' orchestra for films such as Lost Horizon before becoming the studio's music director in the early 1940s.

Selected filmography

He scored the music to the following films: