Oscar Takes Note of Composer Morricone

Musician Ennio Morricone, composer of more than 300 motion picture scores over a 45-year career, has been voted an Honorary Award by the Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

The Award, an Oscar statuette, will be given to Morricone at the 79th Academy Awards presentation, February 25, 2007, "for his magnificent and multifaceted contributions to the art of film music."

Morricone previously earned five Academy Award nominations for original score on the films 'Days of Heaven" (1978), "The Mission" (1986), "The Untouchables" (1987), "Bugsy" (1991) and "Malèna" (2000).

While the bulk of his work has been on foreign films including "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly", "Once upon a Time in America" and "Cinema Paradiso", Morricone has composed scores for "Bulworth", "In the Line of Fire", "La Cage aux Folles", "Two Mules for Sister Sara" and "The Thing".

His current project "Leningrad" has been announced for a 2008 release.

Morricone was originally hired in 1964 by Sergio Leone and began a long collaboration with the director on what came to be known as 'spaghetti westerns'.