Adam Schlesinger

He died of complications from COVID-19 at age 52.

Adam Schlesinger studied at Williams College and Montclair High School. The recorded working language is English. The field of work recorded is pop music, film score and popular music. Subjects and genres recorded for the work are power pop. Residence is recorded at Poughkeepsie.

Schlesinger was born in New York City on October 31, 1967, to publicist Barbara (née Bernthal) and Stephen Schlesinger. He was a cousin of actor Jon Bernthal and a grandson of musician Murray Bernthal. He was raised in a secular Jewish family in the Manhattan borough of New York City and Montclair, New Jersey, attending Montclair High School in the latter. He received a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy from Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts.

Schlesinger and The Daily Show executive producer David Javerbaum co-wrote the songs for the musical theater adaptation of the John Waters film Cry-Baby. Cry-Baby debuted at the La Jolla Playhouse in La Jolla, California in November 2007. Previews for the Broadway run began at the Marquis Theatre on March 15, 2008. Its official opening night was April 24, 2008. Schlesinger and Javerbaum co-wrote the closing song "I Have Faith in You" for Javerbaum's play An Act of God, which opened on Broadway on May 28, 2015. The song is performed by Jim Parsons, Chris Fitzgerald, and Tim Kazurinsky. Schlesinger and Sarah Silverman collaborated on a musical titled The Bedwetter, based on her book of the same name. The musical was set for previews to begin on May 9, 2020, at the Atlantic Theater Company's Linda Gross Theater; opening night was scheduled for Wednesday, June 10, 2020. The dates were later postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The musical ultimately premiered in previews in April 2022. Prior to his death, Schlesinger had been working on the music for a stage adaption of the television series The Nanny.

Schlesinger and Javerbaum co-wrote the opening number of the 2011 Tony Awards ceremony, "It's Not Just for Gays Anymore", as well as the opening and closing numbers of the 2012 Tony Awards, "What If Life Were More Like Theater" and "If I Had Time", all performed by Neil Patrick Harris. They wrote "TV Is a Vast Wonderland", the opening number of the 2011 Emmy Awards, performed by Jane Lynch, and "The Number in the Middle of the Show", performed at the 2013 Emmy Awards by Neil Patrick Harris, Sarah Silverman, and Nathan Fillion. Schlesinger's television composing work includes theme music, songs, and/or score for I Love You, America (Hulu), The Maya Rudolph Show (NBC), A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest Gift of All!, the 2011 and 2012 Tony Awards, the 2011 and 2013 Emmy Awards, Big Time Rush, T.U.F.F. Puppy (Nickelodeon), Good Luck Charlie (Disney Channel), The Fresh Beat Band (Nickelodeon), Kathy (Bravo), Crank Yankers, Wedding Band (TBS), the Billboard Music Awards, Bubble Guppies (Nick Jr.), The Howard Stern Show, Sesame Street, Comedy Central's Night of Too Many Stars, Robert Smigel's cartoons for Saturday Night Live, The Disney Parks Christmas Day Parade with Neil Patrick Harris, The Comedy Awards (Comedy Central), American Dreams, Stephen King's Kingdom Hospital, The In-Laws, The Man Show, Supernoobs, Too Late with Adam Carolla, The Dana Carvey Show, House of Buggin, My Kind of Town, Johnny Test, and others. His songs have been licensed for use on numerous television series, including Scrubs, The Hills, Gossip Girl, Melrose Place, Felicity, Roswell, and others. He wrote songs for and was executive music producer of the scripted comedy Crazy Ex-Girlfriend on The CW.

As a record producer and mixer, he worked with The Monkees, Fever High, Dashboard Confessional, Swirl 360, Tahiti 80, Motion City Soundtrack, Verve Pipe, Robert Plant, America, the Sounds, They Might Be Giants, Fastball, and many other artists, as well as producing or co-producing five Fountains of Wayne albums and six Ivy albums.

Schlesinger was also in a side project band called Tinted Windows formed by guitarist James Iha, previously of The Smashing Pumpkins and A Perfect Circle, singer Taylor Hanson of Hanson, and Bun E. Carlos of Cheap Trick, and recorded and toured with them in 2009 and 2010. He also contributed to Iha's second solo album, Look to the Sky (2012). He was the main composer and producer for Brooklyn-based synth-pop duo Fever High.

On January 30, 1999, Schlesinger married Katherine Michel, a graphic designer and Yale University graduate. They met in 1996 at WXOU Radio Bar, a bar that Schlesinger used to frequent with Fountains of Wayne co-founder Chris Collingwood as they were starting the band. They divorced in 2013. Schlesinger and Michel had two daughters.

• LAist Interview with Adam Schlesinger of Fountains of Wayne * * • Adam Schlesinger