Tony-Winning Lyricist Sheldon Harnick ‘Fiddler on the Roof’ Creator, Dies At 99
FILE - Sheldon Harnick accepts the special Tony Award for lifetime achievement in the Theatre at the Tony Awards at the Beacon Theatre on Sunday, June 12, 2016, in New York. Harnick, who with composer Jerry Bock made up the premier musical-theater songwriting duos of the 1950s and 1960s with shows such as "Fiddler on the Roof," "Fiorello!" and "The Apple Tree," died Friday. He was 99. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)
NEW YORK (AP) — Tony- and Grammy Award-winning lyricist Sheldon Harnick, who with composer Jerry Bock made up the premier musical-theater songwriting duos of the 1950s and 1960s with shows such as “Fiddler on the Roof,” “Fiorello!” and “The Apple Tree,” has died.
He was 99.
Known for his wry, subtle humor and deft wordplay, Harnick died in his sleep Friday of natural causes.
Bock and Harnick first hit success for the music and lyrics to “Fiorello!,” which earned them each Tonys and a rare Pulitzer Prize in 1960.
In addition, Harnick was nominated for Tonys in 1967 for “The Apple Tree,” in 1971 for “The Rothschilds” and in 1994 for “Cyrano — The Musical.”
