Former Simpsons composer Alf Clausen drops wrongful termination suit

Clausen (who was responsible for the show’s iconic score, not its theme song) claimed in his initial suit that he was fired because of his age, as he was 78 at the time, and because of an unidentified medical condition (at some point it was revealed to be a Parkinson’s diagnosis). He noted the composers he had been replaced with were “substantially younger” and “paid less,” leading credence to a theory that Fox, the producers at Gracie Films, and new owner Disney was simply trying to make excuses for cutting costs.

Simpsons showrunner Matt Selman had responded by saying that Clausen, who used a full orchestra and whose talents tended to skew toward jazz and big band tunes, simply couldn’t keep up with the stylistic demands of the show as it is now, saying The Simpsons’ “creative possibilities were limited by Clausen’s abilities.” This was primarily an issue in an Empire-inspired episode that required Clausen to compose hip-hop music, which prompted producer James L. Brooks to question whether or not Clausen could do it and whether or not he could keep up in general.

Clausen’s defense involved pointing out that nobody, in his decades working on the show, had ever directly questioned his ability to compose more modern musical styles, but it apparently didn’t sway anybody. Now, Bakhtiar says Clausen has been “utterly devastated” by all of this and that Clausen’s son has noted a “rapid decline” in the composer’s “emotional and physical health.”