New details have emerged regarding the sad death of Jerry Adler, who starred in The Sopranos.
As previously reported, his family issued an obituary, stating: “Jerry Adler passed away on August 23, 2025, at the age of 96. Born on February 4, 1929, Jerry was a resident of New York, New York."
Adler passed away peacefully in his sleep in New York City on Saturday, his spokesperson confirmed. “He passed peacefully in his sleep in New York City and is survived by his four daughters — Alisa, Amy, Laura and Emily,” they told Page Six.
Born in Brooklyn, Adler spent decades working behind the curtain of Broadway before stepping in front of the camera in his 60s.
A cousin of legendary acting teacher Stella Adler, he cut his teeth as a theater hand, stage manager, and director on major productions, including serving as stage manager for the original My Fair Lady.
Adler didn’t make his TV debut until the early 1990s, appearing in the series Brooklyn Bridge in 1991, followed by Woody Allen’s 1993 film Manhattan Murder Mystery. Guest spots in Hudson Street and Alright Already followed.
Reflecting on his late start, Adler told the CT Post in 2017: “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. It’s so weird."
It was in 1999 that Adler found his defining role: Herman “Hesh” Rabkin, the sharp-tongued consigliere and loan shark who became one of Tony Soprano’s most trusted advisors.
Appearing in 28 episodes across all six seasons — including both the pilot and the finale — Adler gave fans some of the HBO classic’s most memorable lines, including his early quip: “A hit is a hit.”
His Sopranos co-star Steven Van Zandt shared a heartfelt tribute on social media, writing: “Such an honor working with you. Travel well my friend.”
Adler’s death comes only months after the passing of fellow Sopranos actor Charley Scalies, who died in May at 84 after a “long battle” with Alzheimer’s. Their co-star James Gandolfini died in 2013 at the age of 51.
After The Sopranos, Adler went on to another breakout role as lawyer Howard Lyman in The Good Wife.
Initially intended for a single episode, his character proved so popular that he went on to appear in 30 episodes between 2011 and 2016, as well as two episodes of spin-off The Good Fight in 2017 and 2018.
Series co-creator Robert King reflected on how Adler’s humor reshaped the character’s future on the show: “The intent was only to have him for one episode of THE GOOD WIFE, but he was so funny in a diner scene, yelling ‘I said ice cream, you stupid b***h’ we had him back for six years of Good Wife and three years of Good Fight. One of our favorite collaborators.”
His friend Frank J. Reilly also honored him online, writing: “The great actor, my friend Jerry Adler died today at the age of 96. You know him from one of his iconic roles had from many of his guest appearances. Not bad for a guy who didn’t start acting until he was 65.”