During the Depression, Gould, while a teenager, worked in New York City playing piano in movie theaters, as well as with vaudeville acts. When Radio City Music Hall opened in December 1932, 19 year old Gould was hired as the staff pianist. By 1935, he was conducting and arranging orchestral programs for New York's WOR radio station, where he reached a national audience via the Mutual Broadcasting System, combining popular programming with classical music.
In 1936, Gould married Shirley Uzin, but the marriage ended in divorce in 1943. In the following year, Gould married Shirley Bank.[3][4] This marriage, too, ended in divorce.[5]
Gould led the orchestra for The Jack Pearl Show, which was broadcast on NBC in the 1930s.[6]: 170 In the 1940s, Gould appeared on the Cresta Blanca Carnival[6] radio program, Keep 'Em Rolling,[6]: 189 and Major Bowes' Shower of Stars,[6]: 213 as well as The Chrysler Hour on CBS, where he reached an audience of millions. In 1942, he composed music for the short film Ring of Steel, directed by Garson Kanin and produced by the Film Unit of the U.S. Office for Emergency Management. In 1943, he was hired by the William H. Weintraub advertising agency as its musical director, believed to be the first position of its kind in the advertising field.[7]
Gould had four children. On February 16, 1945, Gould's son Eric was born.[4] Gould's son David was born on March 2, 1947.[8] Gould's first daughter, Abby, was born on February 3, 1950,[8] and, on December 21, 1954, his daughter Deborah was born.[8]
For many decades Gould was an active member of ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers). He sat on its board from 1959 and served as president from 1986 until 1994.[2] During his tenure, he lobbied for the intellectual rights of performing artists as the internet was becoming a force that would greatly affect ASCAP's members.
Incorporating new styles into his repertoire as they emerged, Gould incorporated wildly disparate elements, including a rappingnarrator titled "The Jogger and the Dinosaur," American tap dancing in his "Tap Dance Concerto" for dancer and orchestra, and a singing fire department titled "Hosedown"—commissioned works for the Pittsburgh Youth Symphony. In 1993, his work "Ghost Waltzes" was commissioned for the ninth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition. In the same year, he received the El Premio Billboard for his contributions to Latin music in the United States.[11] In 1994, Gould received the Kennedy Center Honor in recognition of lifetime contributions to American culture.
Gould died on February 21, 1996, in Orlando, Florida,[1] where he was the first resident guest composer/conductor at the Disney Institute and was in the middle of a three-day tribute honoring his music. He was 82 years old.[2]
^Lannert, John (June 5, 1993). "Changes In Wind At Confab". Billboard. Vol. 105, no. 23. Nielsen Business Media. p. 11; 44. ISSN0006-2510. Billboard also honored Gould with its first "El Premio Billboard" award for his contribution to the growth of Latin music in the U.S.