Jerry Sterner (15 September 1938 – 11 June 2001) was an American businessman and playwright, best known for the play ''

Other People's Money ''Other People's Money'' is a 1991 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by Norman Jewison, starring Danny DeVito, Gregory Peck and Penelope Ann Miller. It was adapted by screenwriter Alvin Sargent from the 1989 play of the same name b ...

''. Born in the Bronx, he sold tokens on the night shift where he wrote several plays. In 1966 he married Jean Sterner. They have two daughters, Emily James and the writer, Kate Shaffar. In 1980 he left a successful run in the real estate business to become a writer full-time. His early plays include Tit for Tat and Be Happy for Me, starring David Groh, Philip Bosco, and Priscilla Lopez. His first big success came with Other People's Money which opened at the Minetta Lane Theater in 1989 and ran for several years. It starred Kevin Conway, Mercedes Ruehl, James Murtaugh, Arch Johnson, and Scotty Block. He worked on several musicals, including one with

Jerry Bock Jerrold Lewis Bock (November 23, 1928November 3, 2010) was an American musical theater composer. He received the Tony Award for Best Musical and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama with Sheldon Harnick for their 1959 musical ''Fiorello!'' and the Tony A ...

, called 1040. He is buried in

Washington Cemetery Washington Cemetery may refer to: *Washington Cemetery (Brooklyn) *Washington Cemetery (Washington Court House, Ohio) {{Disambiguation ...

behind his old building in Brooklyn. His headstone is inscribed sardonically with: "Finally, a plot."

Other works

*''Be Happy For Me'' - 1986 Off Broadway play starring

David Groh David Lawrence Groh (May 21, 1939 – February 12, 2008)Noland, Clair"David Groh, 68; Husband on 'Rhoda'" ''Los Angeles Times''. 14 February 2008. was an American actor best known for his portrayal of Joe Gerard in the 1970s television series ''R ...

Philip Bosco Philip Michael Bosco (September 26, 1930 – December 3, 2018) was an American actor. He was known for his Tony Award-winning performance as Saunders in the 1989 Broadway production of ''Lend Me a Tenor'', and for his starring role in the 2007 fi ...

and

Priscilla Lopez Priscilla Lopez (born February 26, 1948) is an American singer, dancer, and actress. She is perhaps best known for creating the role of Diana Morales in ''A Chorus Line''. She has had the distinction of appearing in two Broadway landmarks: one o ...

References

External links

*
Be Happy For Me, NYTimes review
2001 deaths 1938 births 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights Writers from the Bronx American male dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American male writers {{US-playwright-stub