James David Buttolph Jr. (August 3, 1902 – January 1, 1983) was an American film composer who scored over 300 movies[1] in his career.

After earning a music degree, Buttolph moved to Europe in 1923[2][1] and studied in Austria and Germany supporting himself as a nightclub pianist.

He returned to the U.S. in 1927[1] and, a few years later, began working for NBC radio network as an arranger and conductor.

In 1933, Buttolph moved to Los Angeles and began working in films.

[citation needed] In the mid-1950s, Buttolph started to compose scores for television, the most memorable being the theme for the TV western Maverick[3] starring James Garner with the same music appearing in his score of The Lone Ranger (1956).