Jerry Adler, a veteran actor who appeared in series The Sopranos, The Good Wife and Rescue Me and also served as a Broadway director and stage manager, has died at the age of 96, his loved ones announced.
His friend, Frank J. Reilly, confirmed his death, writing in part on X: “The great actor, my friend Jerry Adler died today at the age of 96. You know him from one of his iconic roles had from many of his guest appearances. Not bad for a guy who didn’t start acting until he was 65.”
In HBO’s seminal series, Adler notably portrayed consigliere Hesh Rabkin, a Jewish associate of Tony Soprano’s (James Gandolfini), whose wisdom helps guide the mafia boss. On the opposite end of the spectrum, he played the crude name partner Howard Lyman in The Good Wife and offshoot The Good Fight. In FX’s Rescue Me, he recurred as New York Fire Department deputy chief Sidney Feinberg.
Born Feb. 4, 1929 in Brooklyn, New York, Adler didn’t begin acting until he was in his 60s, and his cousin was the famed acting coach Stella Adler. The performer’s foray into the industry came in 1950 via his father, then the general manager of New York City’s prestigious Group Theatre, who was working on a production of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. “I’m a creature of nepotism,” Adler admitted in a 2015 interview for the website TheaterMania, saying he cut class at Syracuse University to be the assistant stage manager.
Speaking to the strangeness of being recognized for his work on screen after putting in countless hours backstage, Adler told the outlet: “Having done so many shows on Broadway backstage in the dark, to be recognized now is so weird and something that you never expected. When I walk down the street now, it’s like ‘Hey, Hesh!’”
Adler would go on to have an illustrious career behind-the-scenes in theater, partaking in over 50 Broadway shows, including working as the stage manager for the 1956 original production of My Fair Lady, starring a then-19-year-old Julie Andrews. As a director, he helmed several Broadway shows. On the television side, he also served as a stage manager for soap Santa Barbara and the 1985 Tony Awards.
Transitioning out of production work and aiming to retire, Adler pivoted unexpectedly into acting beginning in the early ’90s. His credits include series Quantum Leap, Northern Exposure, Hudson Street, Raising Dad, The West Wing, Mad About You, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Transparent and Broad City.
In film, Adler appeared in big screen debut The Public Eye (1992), Manhattan Murder Mystery (1993), In Her Shoes (2005), Find Me Guilty (2006), A Most Violent Year (2014) and Driveways (2019).
