Bruce Jay Friedman (April 26, 1930June 3, 2020) was an American novelist, screenwriter, playwright, and actor. He was noted for his versatility of writing in both literature and pop culture. He was also a trailblazer in the style of modern American black humor. The themes he wrote about reflected the major changes taking place in society during the 1960s and 1970s. Many of his stories were inspired by the events of his personal life. Early life Friedman was born in New York City on April 26, 1930, and was raised in The Bronx, together with his sister, Dollie. His father, Irving, worked at a company selling women's apparel; his mother, Mollie (Liebowitz), was a regular theatergoer. His family was Jewish. Friedman attended DeWitt Clinton High School before studying journalism at the University of Missouri, having applied unsuccessfully to Columbia University. He subsequently joined the United States Air Force and wrote for the military publication Air Training. One of his commanding officers there made him a gift of The Catcher in the Rye, Of Time and the River, and From Here to Eternity. After reading the books in approximately a single weekend, it spurred him on to become a writer. Career After he finished his two-year stint in the military, Friedman went back to The Bronx. He wrote his first short story titled "Wonderful Golden Rule Days", which he sold to The New Yorker. He was later employed by Magazine Management Company in 1954, working for many of the era's famous men's magazines. Friedman ended up as an executive editor in charge of the magazines Men (not the present magazine of the same title), Male, and Man's World. Friedman published Stern, the first of his eight novels, in 1962 to reviews that noted the author's use of comedy. Writing in The Press Democrat, Isabelle Hoover said of the author: "His style is swift-moving, his story humorous and at the same time serious. The pages of his short book are generously sprinkled with sex and the ubiquitous four letter words of modern writers. But essentially Stern is a novel about spiritual conflict." Ron Martin began his review in The Detroit Free Press: "It is said that when Bruce Jay Friedman was graduated from DeWitt Clinton High School in New York City, he was voted the second funniest fellow in his class. It is a safe bet that Friedman is now ready to