Jerry Alder, best known for his role as Hesh Rabkin on The Sopranos, has died at the age of 96. Adler, whose cousin was the renowned acting teacher Stella Adler, didn’t start acting until he was in his 60s, spending much of his working life behind the scenes on Broadway, including working as stage manager for the original production of My Fair Lady. After taking up acting, in addition to The Sopranos, Adler also starred in Mad About You, Rescue Me, Transparent, and The Good Wife. In a 2017 interview, he said of making the transition to acting, “You know what’s interesting? You spend your whole career backstage. Nobody knows who you are or even knows your name. They don’t know anything about you. And then you do a television show and suddenly you’re a celebrity and everyone knows your face.

See Full Page