Richard Gillis

Singer/songwriter Richard Gillis was plucked from obscurity by "Wild Bunch" (1969) director Sam Peckinpah, who tapped him to provide songs for his Western "The Ballad of Cable Hogue" (1970), and which led to a brief career as a musician and actor in Hollywood. Born December 15, 1938 in Hollywood, California, Gillis studied chemistry at the University of Denver and UCLA before entering the U.S. Army. Upon his release, he headed back to Hollywood to work in the motion picture industry. He reportedly worked in various behind-the-scenes capacities, including set designer and prop master, while performing at various bars and restaurants in Los Angeles. At one such location - Jason's Steakhouse in Toluca Lake - iconoclastic director Sam Peckinpah heard his act and signed him to a personal services contract. Their first collaboration was "The Ballad of Cable Hogue," for which Gillis and composer Jerry Goldsmith wrote the music and lyrics for several gentle songs heard throughout the film. Gillis would go on to provide music for several other films, including "A Boy and His Dog" (1973), a dark science fiction film directed by character actor L.Q. Jones, a mainstay of Peckinpah's repertory company, and wrote the scores for several low-budget features like "The Bees" (1978). Gillis also acted in several films, including "Boy," John Landis's monster movie spoof "Schlock" (1973) and Garry Marshall's "Frankie and Johnny" (1991). His last collaboration with Peckinpah came with the ill-fated "Convoy" (1978), for which he acted and also provided songs. He died at the age of 80 after suffering a fall at his home in Thousand Oaks, California on July 31, 2019.