Rod McKuen Net Worth

What was Rod McKuen's Net Worth?

Rod McKuen was an American poet, singer-songwriter, composer, musician, and actor who had a net worth of $20 million at the time of his death.

In addition to being one of the best-selling poets in the United States in the late 1960s, Rod McKuen composed popular and classical music as well as film scores. He was also known for translating and popularizing the songs of Belgian singer-songwriter Jacques Brel in the US.

McKuen sold more than 100 million records and 60 million books worldwide. He wrote more than 1,500 songs, which have been performed by artists such as Barbra Streisand, Perry Como, Waylon Jennings, Petula Clark, The Boston Pops, Johnny Cash, Chet Baker, Johnny Mathis, and Frank Sinatra. He was nominated for Academy Awards for composing the movies "A Boy Named Charlie Brown" and "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie." Rod McKuen passed away on January 29, 2015, at the age of 81.

Early Life and Education

Rod McKuen was born on April 29, 1933 in a Salvation Army hostel in Oakland, California. He was raised by his mother Clarice and his stepfather, who was a violent alcoholic; he never knew his biological father. Sexually abused by his relatives, McKuen eventually ran away from home and took a number of odd jobs along the West Coast, including ranch hand, railroad worker, rodeo cowboy, and radio DJ. He kept a journal along the way in which he would write his first works of poetry and song lyrics. After dropping out of Oakland Technical High School, McKuen became a newspaper columnist and propagandist during the Korean War.

(via Getty)

Career Beginnings in Entertainment

In San Francisco, California in the 1950s, McKuen read his poetry in clubs alongside the popular Beat poets of the era. He also started singing folk music at the Purple Onion cellar club. McKuen began releasing albums in the latter half of the 1950s, with titles including "Songs for a Lazy Afternoon," "Lonely Summer," and the spoken word albums "Time of Desire" and "Beatsville." He also did some acting, with roles in the musical comedies "Rock, Pretty Baby" (1956) and "Summer Love" (1958) and the Western "Wild Heritage" (1958). At the end of the decade, McKuen moved to New York City and composed and conducted music for the television anthology series "CBS Television Workshop."

Poetry and Prose

In the second half of the 1960s, McKuen began publishing books of poetry. With such titles as "Stanyan Street & Other Sorrows," "Listen to the Warm," and the Grammy Award-winning "Lonesome Cities," he became one of the best-selling poets in the United States at the time. While his romantic poetry and its themes of love and spirituality were popular with general audiences, critics largely found McKuen's writing saccharine and superficial. He kept on publishing poetry collections until the early 21st century. McKuen also wrote some prose, including the autobiographical "Finding My Father."

Songwriting and Composing

While living in France in the early 1960s, McKuen met Belgian singer-songwriter Jacques Brel. He subsequently started translating Brel's songs into English, resulting in the hit songs "Seasons in the Sun" and "If You Go Away." McKuen also translated songs by such French artists as Gilbert Bécaud, Pierre Delanoé, and Georges Moustaki. Venturing into classical music and film scoring, McKuen collaborated with composers such as Henry Mancini and John Williams. In 1969, he composed the music for the films "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie" and "A Boy Named Charlie Brown," and earned Academy Award nominations for both. McKuen later composed the scores for "Scandalous John," "The Borrowers," and "Emily," among other films.

During the peak of his popularity in the late 1960s, McKuen collaborated with Anita Kerr and the San Sebastian Strings on a series of albums, including "The Sea," "The Earth," "The Sky," and "For Lovers." He also wrote all the songs on Frank Sinatra's 1969 album "A Man Alone," including the popular track "Love's Been Good to Me." In the spring of 1969, McKuen performed on a half-hour television special on NBC. He continued to have success in the 1970s, writing hit songs for such artists as Perry Como and Barbra Streisand. McKuen was particularly popular in the Netherlands, where his songs "Soldiers Who Want to Be Heroes" and "Without a Worry in the World" topped the charts. Meanwhile, McKuen branched out into classical music with orchestral compositions that included concertos, suites, and symphonies.

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Late Career

McKuen retired from performing live in the early 1980s. He continued publishing poetry and releasing albums, mostly of the compilation variety, over the ensuing years. McKuen also served as executive president of the American Guild of Variety Artists, with his tenure lasting longer than any other's in the organization's history.

Personal Life and Death

Although he never categorized his sexual orientation, McKuen was active in the LGBTQ rights movement and said that he didn't have a preference when it came to choosing between the sexes. He frequently did benefit performances for LGBTQ groups and AIDS research. McKuen lived in Beverly Hills, California with his partner Edward Habib and four cats.

On January 29, 2015, McKuen passed away from respiratory arrest brought on by pneumonia. He was 81 years of age.

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