Lee Adams

Biography

Lee Adams was born in Mansfield, Ohio, on August 14, 1924. He is the son of Dr. Leopold Adams, originally of Stamford, Connecticut, and Florence Ellis (originally Elishack) Adams, originally of Racine, Wisconsin. His family is Jewish. He is a graduate of Mansfield Senior High School. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Ohio State University and a Master's from Columbia University. While attending Ohio State, he was a brother of the Nu chapter of the Zeta Beta Tau fraternity. He worked as a journalist for newspaper and magazines. He met Charles Strouse in 1949, and they initially wrote for summer-time revues.

Adams won Tony Awards in 1961 for Bye Bye Birdie, the first Broadway musical he wrote with Strouse, and in 1970 for Applause and was nominated for a Tony Award in 1965 for Golden Boy. In addition, he wrote the lyrics for All American, It's a Bird...It's a Plane...It's Superman, Bring Back Birdie, and A Broadway Musical, and the book and lyrics for Ain't Broadway Grand.

Adams has been married to his wife, Dr. Kelly Wood Adams, since September 1980. They have lived in Briarcliff Manor, New York since 2007. He has two daughters and three grandchildren. He turned 100 in August 2024.

Nonmusical writing

In addition to his work with lyrics, Adams "had a lifelong fascination with words," which led to his being an editor for the Sunday newspaper magazine supplement This Week and a member of the staff of Pageant magazine.

Works

• A Pound in Your Pocket (1958)
• Bye Bye Birdie (1960)
• All American (1962)
• Golden Boy (1964)
• It's a Bird...It's a Plane...It's Superman (1966)
• Applause (1970)
• I and Albert (1972)
• Bring Back Birdie (1980)
• A Broadway Musical (1982), contributed the song Dancing
• Ain't Broadway Grand! (1993)

References

Sources

References

1. "Aug 15, 1924, page 20 - News Journal at Newspapers.com".
2. "Lee Adams – Broadway Cast & Staff {{!}} IBDB".
3. {{cite encyclopedia. (1976). Stanley. Green. [[Dodd, Mead & Co.]]. link
4. (February 23, 1975). "Lyricist Lee Adams to Write Show Biz Column".
5. [https://www.pbs.org/wnet/broadway/stars/lee-adams/ "Lee Adams"] pbs.com, retrieved January 31, 2019
6. [http://www.playbill.com/person/lee-adams-vault-0000006790# "Lee Adams Broadway"] Playbill, retrieved January 31, 2019
7. Additionally, Strouse and Adams co-wrote "Those Were the Days", the opening theme to the TV [[situation comedy]] ''[[All in the Family]]''. Adams was inducted into the [[Songwriters Hall of Fame]] in 1989.[https://www.songhall.org/profile/Lee_Adams "Lee Adams"] songhall.org, retrieved January 31, 2019
8. "Sep 14, 1980, page 313 - Oakland Tribune at Newspapers.com".
9. Kramer, Peter D.. (October 16, 2015). "Briarcliff's 'Birdie' connection, Lee Adams". [[Gannett Company]].
10. Friedwald, Will. (October 23, 2024). "A Celebration of Songwriter Charles Strouse Sparks Sentimental Journeys Aplenty". [[The New York Sun]].
11. (2007). "Routledge Guide to Broadway". Routledge.