Adam Schlesinger, a Grammy- and Emmy-winning songwriter for the band Fountains of Wayne and the show Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, died today from complications related to the coronavirus, according to Variety. Schlesinger had been hospitalized for more than a week prior to his death, with his lawyer confirming on March 31 that he had been sedated and hooked up to a ventilator. That same day, fellow Fountains of Wayne member Chris Collingwood posted a note from Schlesinger’s family to Twitter thanking fans for the outpouring of support and saying they were keeping hope for his recovery. “Thank you for the outpouring of love for Adam and his family. Adam has been hospitalized with COVID-19. He’s on a ventilator and has been sedated to facilitate his recovery. He is receiving excellent care, his condition is improving and we are cautiously optimistic. His family appreciates all of the love and support.†His Crazy Ex collaborator Rachel Bloom posted to Twitter asking that people keep Schlesinger in their thoughts as he continued to receive treatment.
Schlesinger was a ten-time Emmy nominee, and half of those nods came from his work on the Bloom-created CW show, for which he was the executive music producer. His Emmy win was for the Crazy Ex song “Antidepressants Are So Not a Big Deal,†and he took home a Grammy for Best Comedy Album for his work on A Stephen Colbert Christmas. Schlesinger, a prolific songwriter, was also nominated for an Oscar for co-writing the maddeningly catchy theme song to the movie That Thing You Do! His multiple Tony Award nominations also put him on EGOT watch in his career. Schlesinger was 52 years old.
Crazy-Ex Girlfriend co-creator Aline Brosh McKenna posted a remembrance of her long-time friend on Twitter shortly after the news of his death was released, along with a demo he sent her via e mail for a song on their show.