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Roy Budd

Roy Budd, 46, jazz pianist and composer who scored more than 50 films, died Aug. 7 in London of a brain hemorrhage.

Film score credits include the 1971 Michael Caine starrer “Get Carter” and 1978’s “The Geese.”

His most recent project was the symphonic score created for the 80-piece orchestra set to accompany the 1925 silent film “The Phantom of the Opera.”

Hershel Gruenberg

Hershel Gruenberg, 79, former assistant director at Republic Pictures in the 1930s and ’40s, died July 29 in Woodland Hills of natural causes.

Survived by two brothers, Leonard and Jerry; several nephews and nieces including Andy Gruenberg, exec VP of domestic distribution at MGM, and Tom Gruenberg, an independent producer.

William Byrd

William Byrd, 27, deaf actor who portrayed the disc jockey Danny in the 1986 film “Children of a Lesser God,” died July 21 in Inglewood of heart failure.

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Born in Kansas City, Byrd was educated at the Model Secondary School for the Deaf before attending and graduating from Gallaudet College, where he studied drama.

In the summer of 1986, Byrd played Jesus in a Model Secondary School theatrical production of “Godspell,” which toured Europe for six weeks. After “Children of a Lesser God,” Byrd was featured in television productions including “A Man Called Hawk,””Beauty and the Beast” and “Houston Nights.”

Survived by his mother and sister.

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Update: 2024-09-27