Musician Adam Schlesinger, a three-time Emmy-winning songwriter widely known for his work as the frontman of Fountains of Wayne, has been hospitalized after testing positive for coronavirus and is on a ventilator, his attorney of 25 years, Josh Grier, told Variety on Tuesday. Despite widespread reports, Schlesinger is not in a coma, Grier insisted.
“He’s very sick and is heavily sedated, as are all people on ventilators, but no one has used the word ‘coma’ to me,” Grier said, adding that Schlesinger has been being treated at an upstate New York hospital for more than a week and has been receiving excellent care. There has been no prognosis released to Grier, he noted, as doctors are hesitant to make predictions based on how little is known about the pandemic virus.
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Schlesinger may be broadly known for Fountains of Wayne, the band he co-founded with Chris Collingwood that picked up two Grammy nominations in 2003, but the songwriter and composer has since been heavily awarded and recognized for his work off-stage in the years since, picking up a Grammy win for best comedy album for his work on A Stephen Colbert Christmas in 2008.
He has since become an EGOT contender, having been nominated also for Oscars and Tonys and winning several Emmys. At the 2018 Emmys, Schlesinger was nominated twice for his work as executive music producer on Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, taking home the trophy for outstanding original music and lyrics for the song “Antidepressants Are So Not A Big Deal,” which he shares with show’s creator and star, Rachel Bloom, and Jack Dolgen. Schlesinger was also nominated over the years for his contributions to the Tony Awards, Sesame Street and a Stephen Colbert Christmas special.
In 1997, Schlesinger was nominated for an Oscar for co-writing the theme song for the Tom Hanks film That Thing You Do!, which also earned him a Golden Globe nod at the time.
Schlesinger’s fans flocked to his Instagram following the news of his diagnosis, with one writing, “Your family and loved ones are in my thoughts. Sending so much love your way. Though we’ve never met, you were integral in the creation of something so major in my life. I cannot thank you enough. Please get well.”
“PRAYING FOR YOU ADAM!” another wrote. “Praying for full recovery. You’re a hero to me.”
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