Working at The Simpsons, Alf Clausen was responsible for songs like "We Do (The Stonecutter's Song)," the Planet of the Apes musical and "We Put the Spring in Springfield," among many, many other compositions. Then, in 2017, he was unexpectedly fired. Now, he's suing Fox for wrongful termination.
According to the lawsuit, Clausen was told that the show was "taking the music in a different direction." His lawyers insist that the reasoning "was pretextual and false... Instead, Plaintiff's unlawful termination was due to perceived disability and age." Clausen was 78 when he was let go.
Clausen was replaced by Bleeding Fingers Music, a production company co-founded by Russell Emanuel, Hans Zimmer and Steve Kofsky. The lawsuit states that Clausen's replacement "was substantially younger in age, who was not only paid less, but was not disabled." It's unclear what Clausen's disability is.
When Clausen was first fired, producers of The Simpsons said that he would "continue to have an ongoing role in the show. They added, "We remain committed to the finest in music for The Simpsons, absolutely including orchestral. This is the part where we would make a joke but neither Alf's work nor the music of The Simpsons is treated as anything but seriously by us."
The show's producers have not yet publicly responded to news of Clausen's lawsuit.
According to the lawsuit, Clausen was told that the show was "taking the music in a different direction." His lawyers insist that the reasoning "was pretextual and false... Instead, Plaintiff's unlawful termination was due to perceived disability and age." Clausen was 78 when he was let go.
Clausen was replaced by Bleeding Fingers Music, a production company co-founded by Russell Emanuel, Hans Zimmer and Steve Kofsky. The lawsuit states that Clausen's replacement "was substantially younger in age, who was not only paid less, but was not disabled." It's unclear what Clausen's disability is.
When Clausen was first fired, producers of The Simpsons said that he would "continue to have an ongoing role in the show. They added, "We remain committed to the finest in music for The Simpsons, absolutely including orchestral. This is the part where we would make a joke but neither Alf's work nor the music of The Simpsons is treated as anything but seriously by us."
The show's producers have not yet publicly responded to news of Clausen's lawsuit.
