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Allen Zwerdling (October 12, 1922 – January 12, 2009) was an American journalist who was co-founder of ''
Backstage Backstage may refer to: * Backstage (theatre), the areas of a theatre that are not part of the house or stage Film and television * ''Back Stage'' (1917 film), a silent film starring Oliver Hardy * ''Back Stage'' (1919 film), a silent film starri ...
'', the "casting bible" for theater performers.


Biography

Zwerdling was born on October 12, 1922, in
Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
, New York, and performed with the Players Guild of Manhattan from 1936 to 1941. before enlisting in the Army Air Force. In the Army during World War II, Zwerdling directed plays and edited a military newspaper. Following his military service, he established the American Players Theater in
Zurich Zurich (; ) is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. , the municipality had 448,664 inhabitants. The ...
, Switzerland and became director of the Kansas City Resident Theater. After returning to
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
in 1948, he was hired by ''
Show Business Show business, sometimes shortened to show biz or showbiz (since 1945), is a vernacular term for all aspects of the entertainment industry.''Oxford English Dictionary'' 2nd Ed. (1989) From the business side (including managers, agents, produce ...
'' as an editor.
Ira Eaker General officer, General (Honorary) Ira Clarence Eaker (April 13, 1896 – August 6, 1987) was a general of the United States Army Air Forces during World War II. Eaker, as second-in-command of the prospective Eighth Air Force, was sent to En ...
was the advertising manager for the publication and the two developed a vision for a publication listing casting notices. The two approached ''
The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture publication based in Greenwich Village, New York City, known for being the country's first Alternative newspaper, alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf (publisher), Dan Wolf, ...
'' with the idea of adding a section to that paper listing notices, but were rejected. They went out on their own and started ''Back Stage'' in 1960 with a run of ten thousand copies per week, reaching a peak circulation of 32,000. The companion '' Back Stage West'' was established in 1994 to reach Los Angeles-area readers and has 24,000 readers. The Backstage.com web site has 20,000 paid subscribers. despite the seemingly small circulation numbers, the various versions of ''Back Stage'' are often passed on between actors and others in related professions looking for work and information about the industry. ''Back Stage'' was sold to
Billboard Publications ''Billboard'' (stylized in lowercase since 2013) is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events and styles related to th ...
in 1986. His partner, Ira Eaker, died in 2002. Zwerdling died at age 86 on January 12, 2009, at his home in
Rosendale, New York Rosendale is a town in the center of Ulster County, New York, United States. It once contained a village Rosendale, primarily centered around Main Street, but which was dissolved through vote in 1977. The population was 5,782 at the 2020 census. ...
, where he had retired to a farm there after selling ''Back Stage''. He had been married to Shirley M. Zwerdling who died a month before him. He was survived by two daughters, a son and a grandson.


See also


References


External Resources


NY Times: Allen Zwerdling, Theater Journalist, Dies at 86Back Stage: Allen Zwerdling, Back Stage Co-Founder and Co-Publisher, Dies
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zwerdling, Allen 1922 births 2009 deaths United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II American publishers (people) American male stage actors Writers from Brooklyn People from Rosendale, New York United States Army Air Forces soldiers