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Mark Snow, the veteran composer behind some of television’s most recognizable scores — most famously The X-Files theme — has died at the age of 78. He passed away Friday, July 4, at his home in Connecticut, his family confirmed.
Over a career spanning nearly five decades, Snow (born Martin Fulterman) lent his musical voice to an extraordinary range of television, film, and made-for-TV movies. With over 200 episodes of The X-Files alone to his credit — plus two feature films and spinoffs like Millennium and The Lone Gunmen — Snow helped define the eerie, mysterious sound of ‘90s sci-fi television. His echoing, whistling X-Files theme became an unexpected international hit in 1996, reaching No. 2 on the UK Singles Chart.
Snow was a 15-time Emmy nominee whose work graced everything from Hart to Hart, T.J. Hooker, and Starsky & Hutch to Blue Bloods, Ghost Whisperer, and Smallville. He also scored high-profile TV movies and miniseries such as Something About Amelia, Helter Skelter, and Children of the Dust.
Fellow composer Sean Callery (24, Homeland) paid tribute in a heartfelt post on social media, calling Snow “one of the most wonderful and talented people I’ve ever known,” and recalling the generosity, wit, and brilliance that marked their decades-long friendship.
“His humor, his spirit, his talent – good God, his immense talent – the world has lost a genuine and beautiful soul,” Callery wrote. “My career got started by an act of generosity on his part 33 years ago – period, full stop. I love you, my friend. There will never ever be another like you.”
From Classical Roots to TV Legend
Born in Brooklyn on August 26, 1946, Snow studied piano from age 10 and later added drums and oboe. After graduating from New York’s High School of Music & Art, he attended the Juilliard School, where he roomed with future film composer Michael Kamen (Die Hard, Lethal Weapon). The two co-founded the New York Rock & Roll Ensemble, fusing classical music with rock in a genre-defying act signed by Atlantic Records.
In 1974, a move to Los Angeles — and a tip from his brother-in-law, actor Georg Stanford Brown — led Snow to his first scoring job on ABC’s The Rookies. To avoid professional conflicts, he adopted the pseudonym “Mark Snow,” which would become his signature.
From there, Snow quickly became a staple in episodic television, writing for The Love Boat, Vega$, Dynasty, Falcon Crest, Cagney & Lacey, and more. His theme for Hart to Hart became a standout hit, leading to work on other major series throughout the 1980s and beyond.
A Synthesizer Pioneer
Snow was among the first TV composers to fully embrace electronic music, building an in-home studio setup long before it was commonplace. While he began with orchestral scores, his 1990s work on The X-Files pushed the boundaries of television music. Scoring as much as 40 minutes per episode, entirely on synthesizers and samplers, Snow created a haunting sonic palette that helped cement the show’s cult status.
“There’s no singing, drums or guitars, and it was a smash hit,” he once said of the X-Files theme. “That’s pretty wild.”
His mastery of electronic composition informed his work on other projects like Millennium, Harsh Realm, Nowhere Man, and later Smallville and Blue Bloods. He earned a César nomination for scoring French director Alain Resnais’ Private Fears in Public Places in 2007, one of several collaborations with the filmmaker.
Accolades and Legacy
In addition to 15 Emmy nominations, Snow received the ASCAP Golden Note Award in 2005 and collected 30 ASCAP Film & Television Music Awards over three decades. The Society of Composers & Lyricists honoured him with an Ambassador Award in 2013, and the Television Academy presented him with a Career Achievement Award in 2014.
His work transcended genre and format — from Christmas comedies like Ernest Saves Christmas to gritty docudramas like Siege at Waco, and from westerns to superhero sagas like The New Mutants.
Despite his remarkable success, Snow remained humble, continuing to compose in a small home studio where he would watch scenes on a screen and improvise directly to picture. “I just start playing along with it. I improvise, and then I hit on something I like, and I go over it again and again,” he said in a 2016 interview.
Remembering a Musical Force
Mark Snow is survived by his wife Glynnis, three daughters, and four grandchildren. To generations of TV viewers, he will be remembered for music that was sometimes spooky, sometimes heartfelt — but always unmistakably his.