In 1932, aged just sixteen, Stein sold a jazz arrangement of
The Song of the Volga Boatmen to bandleader
Alex Bartha, who recorded it under the name "Red Blues." He also was co-composer/arranger of 'Line-a-Jive," recorded in 1935 by the
Blanche Calloway band. Stein composed the eerie music for, among others, the sci-fi and horror movies
It Came From Outer Space,
Revenge of the Creature and
This Island Earth. Despite longstanding claims, he did not write music for the American version of Toho's
King Kong vs. Godzilla. The suspect music heard in that film was composed by fellow Universal-International writer
Hans J. Salter for
Creature from the Black Lagoon, and those original music tracks were re-used in the U. S. release of the Japanese picture. Some of his music, however, was used in the film's theatrical trailer. In addition to horror films, Stein wrote for westerns, dramas and comedies, including the
Audie Murphy western Drums Across the River and
Roger Corman's civil rights drama
The Intruder. His television work included such shows as
The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp,
Gunsmoke,
Lost in Space and
Daniel Boone. Among Stein's compositions are a number that he wrote just for fun, such as
The Sour Suite a tonal, cheery, and quite tongue-in-cheek piece for woodwind quintet. In 2008, a classical piano piece he wrote in 1949 ("Suite for Mario") for his composition teacher, the esteemed Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco, received its world-premiere recording. ==Selected filmography==