US/World News

Fountains of Wayne’s Adam Schlesinger, 52, dies from coronavirus

(JTA) – Adam Schlesinger, known as one of the lead songwriters of the pop rock band Fountains of Wayne and the musical series “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend,” died Wednesday, April 1, from coronavirus complications. He was 52. Schlesinger, who grew up in a secular Jewish home, had been in a hospital in upstate New York for over a week.

Fountains of Wayne’s most famous song was “Stacy’s Mom,” for which Schlesinger and co-songwriter Chris Collingwood were nominated for two Grammy Awards in 2003. He won a Grammy in 2010 for “A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest Gift of All!” In addition, Schlesinger garnered a host of Oscar, Tony and Emmy nominations, including an Oscar nod in 1997 for writing an original song in the Tom Hanks film “That Thing You Do”; two Tony nominations for the musical “CryBaby” in 2008; and Emmy nominations for songs on “Sesame Street.” In recent years, he wrote a majority of the music for “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend,” the very Jewish musical show that aired for four seasons on the CW, and won an Emmy for the song “Antidepressants Are So Not a Big Deal,” alongside the show’s creator and star, Rachel Bloom, and Jack Dolgen. He was most recently at work adapting Sarah Silverman’s memoir, The Bedwetter, into a musical. It was set to begin performances off-Broadway on April 25, but that has been delayed due to the pandemic. Schlesinger was also at work adapting “The Nanny” for Broadway, with Bloom.

Schlesinger is survived by his ex-wife Katherine Michel, and their two daughters.

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