Neil Argo, a composer and orchestrator who worked on such shows as Dynasty; Beverly Hills, 90210 and the long-running nature documentary series Wild America, has died. He was 71.
Argo died Thursday of heart failure at the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Arizona, talent manager Otto Vavrin II announced.
Argo also did music for Melrose Place, The Colbys, Hotel, Burke’s Law and Hearts Are Wild — like Dynasty and 90210, shows from Aaron Spelling’s production company — as well as for a new version of Mission: Impossible and MacGyver.
Argo scored the theme, as well as hundreds of episodes, of Wild America, which aired from 1982-94 on PBS.
“Neil had the ability to cut to the core of a scene in a surprising and touching way,” friend and Wild America producer Marty Stouffer said in a statement. “And he could express universal emotions that we really hadn’t picked up on as yet.”
Argo was the composer on the 1993 Emmy-winning National Geographic special Survivors of the Skeleton Coast and the recipient of 15 Telly Awards for his work in advertising.
His film work included P.J. (2008), starring John Heard, and Chasing the Green (2009).
Argo received his bachelor’s degree in music from North Texas State University and his master’s from the University of Northern Colorado.
Survivors include his wife, Zenna.
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