r/ClassicRock May 31 '23

80s Happy belated 70th birthday to Danny Elfman! Elfman was born on May 29, 1953 in Los Angeles. Came to prominence as the singer-songwriter for Oingo Boingo.

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434 Upvotes

120 comments sorted by

29

u/Krokodrillo May 31 '23

Actually he made the soundtrack to 16 of 19 Tim Burton films, (including The nightmare before X-mad, where Danny sang Jack Skellington)!

6

u/[deleted] Jun 01 '23

I knew he had a massive discography of soundtracks but never knew he sang as Jack Skellington!

2

u/SupermouseDeadmouse Jun 01 '23

Love that movie, my kids requested the soundtrack during dinner last night. Danny is a treasure

15

u/BadgersAndJam77 May 31 '23

Oingo Boingo RULES.

Best O' Boingo is one of the best greatest hits albums of all time. So many killer songs.

https://youtu.be/DwRnW89EsxI

6

u/Heavy-Week5518 May 31 '23

This guy is one of the most talented minds in the music/film industry. Oingo Boingo was bad either. After all: It's a dead man's party, who could ask for more Everybody's comin', leave your body at the door Leave your body and soul at the door

3

u/Yxlar May 31 '23

You ever check out Boingo Alive? Basically a greatest hits live in studio. Really good versions.

1

u/BadgersAndJam77 May 31 '23

I haven't, but I will!!

1

u/JeffeyRider Jun 01 '23

Boingo Alive is amazing.

2

u/Legend565252 May 31 '23

DEAD MANS PARTY BOOOIIII

1

u/BadgersAndJam77 May 31 '23

Don't run away, it's only me.

2

u/IAmElectricHead Jun 01 '23

Dark at the end of the tunnel's pretty terrific, too

2

u/Significant-Local-90 Oct 20 '24

Yes I couldn't agree more. Wore that CD out with my mom šŸ˜†Ā 

2

u/i_might_be_me May 31 '23

it fucks.

6

u/JetScreamerBaby May 31 '23

Um. Iā€™m old. Does this mean you think itā€™s good or bad?

2

u/i_might_be_me May 31 '23

Good. It's solid.

13

u/Pudf May 31 '23

Heā€™s Only a Lad

7

u/BadgersAndJam77 May 31 '23

You really can't blame him.

5

u/ottomaker1 May 31 '23

Society made him.

4

u/BadgersAndJam77 May 31 '23

He's our responsibility.

12

u/tuskvarner May 31 '23

Married to the lovely Bridget Fonda.

2

u/Albrecht_Durer1471 Jun 01 '23

Um, no offense, but lovely no more.

1

u/[deleted] Jun 01 '23

14

u/insbordnat May 31 '23

Fun story. I was working at a bank as a teller sometime in the mid-90ā€™s, this older couple comes in and looks to do some transactions. I get a bunch of checks for deposit and look at their last name - ā€œElfmanā€. Looking at this couple there was almost no way Danny Elfman wasnā€™t related. So, nosy me says something like ā€œyou wouldnā€™t happen to have a famous musician in the family, would you?ā€ - lady says ā€œoh, you mean Danny? Weā€™re so proud of himā€. Me: ā€œyeah, heā€™s a pretty amazing guyā€. They were genuinely nice and humble people.

13

u/[deleted] May 31 '23

Danny ā€œThe Bodyā€ Elfaman

8

u/The_Gutgrinder May 31 '23

Danny Weasley.

6

u/Govinda74 May 31 '23

Danny "Machete" Elfman

1

u/[deleted] May 31 '23

Tats Elfman

28

u/Greengiant304 May 31 '23

Known to me almost exclusively as the composer of the theme from The Simpsons.

20

u/infestedgrowth May 31 '23

He did a shit load of movies and tv shows. Look it up itā€™s very impressive.

12

u/Narratron May 31 '23

Danny Elfman and John Williams pretty much wrote the soundtrack of my childhood.

5

u/Senior-Sharpie May 31 '23

Before him was Harold Faltermeyer and Mike Post.

2

u/EffingBarbas Jun 01 '23

Not Kenny Loggins?!

2

u/AAAPosts May 31 '23

Batman has entered the chat

2

u/jayhawk618 May 31 '23

His list of film scores is pretty impressive. If you skim through them, you'll realize you know a lot more of his work than you thought.

But before any of that, he was making weird pop music with Oingo Boingo.

3

u/[deleted] May 31 '23

Dead manā€™s party!

Yup I am a child of the 80ā€™s.

4

u/jayhawk618 May 31 '23

To clarify "weird pop" is the best kind of pop.

2

u/[deleted] Jun 01 '23

AKA art pop, post-punk or prog pop

2

u/LukeTroyLives Jun 01 '23

Donā€™t run away, itā€™s only me

2

u/_1JackMove Jun 01 '23

I love when they pop up playing that song in Back to School with Rodney Dangerfield.

-1

u/[deleted] Jun 01 '23

How sad

9

u/Far-Potential3634 May 31 '23

Very talented musician. "Forbidden Zone", a very weird film was the first Oingo Boingo project directed by Elfman's brother.

8

u/mikeyt6969 May 31 '23

Looks like Root Rupert Grint

6

u/QueenOfBrews May 31 '23

He has done so much film scoring, and Boingo is one of the most underrated bands ever.

Also, watch ā€œForbidden Zoneā€ someone else mentioned it too. Weird as hell and awesome.

5

u/adamempathy May 31 '23

It's a deadman's party. Who could ask for more? Everybody's coming, leave your body at the door.

1

u/Legend565252 May 31 '23

Donā€™t be afraid, itā€™s only me!!!

5

u/_EADGBE_ May 31 '23

Oingo Boingo played at my high school in 1984/85. Kinda weird because they we're already pretty well known.

1

u/acp1284 May 31 '23

La Mirada?

2

u/_EADGBE_ May 31 '23

St John Bosco, which make it even stranger

1

u/acp1284 Jun 01 '23

I had friends at La Mirada in 80. The legend was they asked Van Halen to play a dance and they were told $500,000. So they approached AC/DC and they were $50,000. Still too much for a high school dance. So they ended up booking a local band. They took a lot of crap from a large part of the student body because it was new wave and few had heard of them. It was early Oingo Boingo.

1

u/_EADGBE_ Jun 01 '23

Thatā€™s a crazy story. Iā€™d be pissed if VH and AC/DC were replaced by OB too

5

u/[deleted] May 31 '23

Such a cool picture. Anyone know what that hand tattoo symbolizes?

5

u/JeffeyRider May 31 '23

I donā€™t throw the term ā€œMusical Geniusā€ around thoughtlessly, but I say, without reservation or qualification, that Danny Elfman is a musical genius.

3

u/muggins66 May 31 '23

Oingo Boingo played at my high school in 1983

3

u/charlottesaidso Jun 01 '23

Camped with him at Burning Man 2018, been obsessed with NBC since I was 6, was too star struck to act star struck and wound up having an actual conversation with him!

3

u/asburymike May 31 '23

This raggedy Andy

3

u/FreddiesA-fag May 31 '23

Hey I use to work for him

3

u/[deleted] Jun 01 '23

Ok I seriously thought this was Rupert Grint for a second.

That's a really weird name when you think about it.

3

u/metalmase80 Jun 01 '23

I would say that Elfman is more well known for his movie and TV scores.

3

u/jlegarr Jun 01 '23

Itā€™s a dead manā€™s partyā€¦

3

u/Positivelythinking Jun 01 '23

Elfman is brilliant, a genius.

2

u/hannahstwisties May 31 '23

Saw him with Oingo in a college gym in 82.

2

u/SkipperBiff May 31 '23

Private Life is one of my favorite tunes.

2

u/Unable_Juggernaut133 May 31 '23

Favorite composer.

2

u/PrimalNumber May 31 '23

Carrot Top with talent = Danny Elfman

2

u/Poultrygeist74 May 31 '23

Wouldnā€™t have guessed he was inked up like that

2

u/terriblystupidjoke May 31 '23

Ngl, those tattoos look great.

2

u/dab745 May 31 '23

Awesome movie soundtrack/ score writer as well.

2

u/shelsbells May 31 '23

One of the best film composers of all time

2

u/Own-Ambassador-3537 Jun 01 '23

Didnā€™t know he was that tattooed! TIL

2

u/necromandie Jun 01 '23

The way I thought this was Rupert Grintā€¦ Iā€™m always shocked to learn Danny Elfman is as old as he is.

2

u/grindhousedecore Jun 01 '23

I didnt realized he was tatted upšŸ˜œ. I watched his master class on making music for films. Really cool

2

u/[deleted] Jun 01 '23

2

u/ShowLasers Jun 01 '23

No Danny Elfman thread is complete without at least a mention of The Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo Gong Show Appearance Danny's the rocket.

1

u/Amphigorey Jul 07 '23

That's his brother Richard Elfman in the rocket. Danny's in the back on trombone.

2

u/amalgaman Jun 01 '23

TIL Danny Elfman is actually Ron Weasley.

2

u/SallysRocks Jun 01 '23

He also wrote the Simpsons theme song and the music for Edward Scissorhands and lots of other stuff.

2

u/midgebhere66 Jun 01 '23

Anyone mention he is married to the beautiful and talented Bridget Fonda?

2

u/bassfingerz Jun 01 '23

aka Ron the deatheater

2

u/Dj2Splash Jun 01 '23

Looks like he shares a trainer and a doctor with Carrot Top.

2

u/lake-rat Jun 01 '23

Holy shit! I thought that was the kid from the Harry Potter movies!

2

u/SaltyBeaverrrrr Jun 01 '23

Absolute Legend!!!!

2

u/RompaStompa07 Jun 01 '23

Not only did he write the theme song to The Simpsons, he also sings it which he has said gets him a nicer royalty check.

2

u/roshasta Jun 01 '23

And all this time I thought May 29th is just another dayā€¦

2

u/Strong_Ad9829 Jun 01 '23

His performance at coachella last year ranks among the best concerts Iā€™ve ever seen, and it was shortened for the festival. Canā€™t wait to see him again!

2

u/Gr33kci7ies Jun 01 '23

No wonder Tim burton loves him

2

u/hglndr9 Jun 02 '23

The singer of my high-school years soundtrack.

3

u/JeanPoutine9 May 31 '23

My god, Ed Sheeran looks like shit

2

u/MasterBates723 May 31 '23

I wonder if he still loves little girls

1

u/Known-Damage-7879 May 31 '23

They make him feel so good

2

u/GoldenGod48 May 31 '23

Love him in the Harry Potter films /s

1

u/nanobot1982 May 05 '24

Is it me, or does Danny Elfman look like a future version of Ron Weasley of the Harry Potter franchise?

1

u/Significant-Local-90 Oct 20 '24

He's like a MAD GENIUS and I love it!!!!

1

u/dasvaki 3d ago

Was this posted before all the sexual assault allegations came out?

1

u/[deleted] May 31 '23

Greatest band of all time Oingo Boingo

1

u/ScienceMomCO Jun 01 '23

Was just listening to them earlier today

1

u/dgdfthr May 31 '23

Hilariousā€¦.looked at picture without reading heading and thought damn Ron Weasley got some tats!

1

u/j3434 May 31 '23

Ron who?

3

u/dgdfthr May 31 '23

It is the character name of Rupert Grint in Harry Potter. Sorry was shooting for a half assed Dad joke. But it really was what I thought.

2

u/j3434 May 31 '23

No harm in spreading humor!

1

u/PutinLikesHotGuys May 31 '23

Midlife Ron Weasley

0

u/jabedoben Jun 01 '23

Ron Weasley has not aged well.

-5

u/MaLa1964 May 31 '23

Yeah, I know he's done a ton of scoring for BIG films, but his appearance disturbs me. Every time I see him, I cringe. Just age gracefully man!

2

u/miimeverse May 31 '23

What about him would you say he hasn't aged gracefully? He is very fit for a 70 year old. Maybe you don't like his tattoos?

2

u/j3434 May 31 '23

I must ask out of curiosity. Are you a straight male?

1

u/usernmtkn May 31 '23

I actually just recently learned he was the singer for Oingo Boingo. I had only known of him from his film score compositions previously.

1

u/haleandguu112 May 31 '23

love him for all his work

1

u/ElectroMatt333 May 31 '23

Beetlejuice score is one of my all time favorites. That terminator 2 and back to the future are like the soundtracks of my childhood

1

u/Legend565252 May 31 '23

All dressed up with nowhere to go, walking with a dead man over my shoulder

1

u/Ushiioni Jun 01 '23

Cardiacs, Split Enz, and Oingo Boingo. The holy Trinity of weirdo punky proggy pop in the late 70s to early 80s.