Breaking Point

GWTW restored Steiner to the top rank of film composers; and in 1940, Jack Warner assigned him to a series of A-pictures that remain jewels in that studio’s crown. In assessing scores for such movies as The Letter and Sergeant York, this chapter details the instrumental experimentation Steiner used to create fresh sounds (an aspect of his work often neglected). Max also was overjoyed to become a father: son Ronald, he hoped, would continue the Steiner musical dynasty. But years of nonstop work, worsening financial problems, and failing eyesight led the composer to suffer a breakdown in 1941. According to Louise, Steiner—usually a kind and generous man—exploded in a rage, striking his wife with a glass ashtray and hitting her in an apparent mental breakdown. Their subsequent separation initiated years of personal unhappiness, amid one of the most creative periods of Steiner’s life.