Daniel Greenburg (June 20, 1936 – December 18, 2023) was an American writer, humorist, and journalist. His 73 books have been published in 20 languages in 24 countries.[citation needed]
His books for adults include the non-fiction books How to Be a Jewish Mother: A Very Lovely Training Manual (1964), How to Make Yourself Miserable: Another Vital Training Manual (1966, with Marcia Jacobs), and How to Avoid Love and Marriage (1983, with Suzanne O'Malley) – all satiricalself-help books – as well as the novels Love Kills (1978), Exes (1990), and Fear Itself (2014).
Greenburg wrote four series of children's books, The Zack Files, Secrets of Dripping Fang, Maximum Boy, and Weird Planet.
Writing career
Daniel Greenburg was born on June 20, 1936, in Chicago, Illinois,[1] the son of Samuel (an artist) and Leah Greenburg.[2]
Greenburg studied design at the University of Illinois. While there, he read Catcher in the Rye, which inspired him to become a writer.[citation needed] He received his B.A. degree from the University of Illinois and his M.A. degree from the University of California in Los Angeles.[3]
After obtaining his M.A. in industrial design, he continued to live in Los Angeles. Dissatisfied with industrial design, he spent three years working at advertising agencies. Meanwhile, his old editor at Esquire, Ralph Ginzburg, had started a new national magazine called Eros and convinced Dan to move to New York and become its managing editor.[4] In New York, Greenburg began to write a satirical non-fiction book entitled How to Be a Jewish Mother, which became the bestselling non-fiction book of 1965.[5]
In September 1969, he published Porno-Graphics: The Shame of our Art Museums, a now scarce and far-out-of-print heavily illustrated book with lift-up vinyl page covers, pull-outs, and copies of famous paintings. In a retrospective interview, Greenburg said, "At the time, I was amused by all the people who were being offended by anything slightly sexual. Usually when something sexual is covered up, it becomes more sexual. I thought it was funny. I had already had some success with a couple of books and Random House said to me 'what else can you do?'"[6]
Greenburg is probably most well known for authoring a handful of very popular series of children's books, although he still also wrote novels for adults (mostly mysteries and thrillers). He also wrote for television and movies, and has been regularly published in Life, Time, The New Yorker, and other national publications.
When asked how he keeps in touch with what kids like in an interview in 2005, he responded: "I visit schools constantly. I talk to kids, I try out ideas on them, and I ask them what they like to read. Both boys and girls tell me they love scary stories and funny stories the best, and the boys tell me they love to be grossed out. I've tried to do all three things in these books." When asked where he gets ideas for his books, he replied: "1) inspiration from adventures I've survived; 2) a funny title I think up first ...; 3) asking myself "What if ...?".[7]
Personal life and death
Greenburg's first wife was film director and author Nora Ephron (1941–2012). After seven years, their marriage ended in an amicable divorce.
His second wife was writer Suzanne O'Malley, whom he married in 1980; they remained married for fifteen years before they separated, eventually divorcing in 1998. With O'Malley, he had a son, Zack O'Malley Greenburg; Dan Greenburg's children's book series The Zack Files was named for him.
Private Lessons II (1993), based on his novel Philly
Dramatic works
Greenburg's plays have been performed on Broadway, off-Broadway, at the American Conservatory Theater, Yale University, and at the Actors Studio, where he was a member of the Playwrights Unit.
Arf! and The Great Airplane Snatch (author of one-acts that ran off-Broadway)[citation needed]
The Restaurant (author of one-act play which ran off-Broadway)[citation needed]
Convention (author of one-act play which ran off-Broadway)[citation needed]
How to Be a Jewish Mother (December 1967) (co-author, author of the original book).[10] Stage adaptations of Greenburg's best-selling book have been running for over 30 years; they've been produced in France, Spain, Poland, Israel, Brazil, Holland, Turkey, and Brazil.[citation needed]
Television
A Deadly Vision (a 1997 made-for-TV movie adaptation by Greenburg of his best-selling novel, Love Kills)
The Zack Files (a 2000–2002 television series based on Greenburg's best-selling children's book series)
Greenburg has also written numerous sitcom pilots for CBS-TV and NBC-TV, including a fireman sitcom[citation needed] for producer-comedian Alan King, which Greenburg researched by spending months with NYC firefighters[citation needed], and a cop sitcom[citation needed] for producer Sonny Grosso, which Greenburg researched by spending months with NYC homicide cops.[citation needed]
Greenburg was also a television talk show guest on the Today Show, The Tonight Show, Larry King Live, and Late Night with David Letterman. With fellow author Avery Corman, Greenburg has also appeared as a stand-up comedian on television talk shows hosted by Sir David Frost, Dick Cavett, and Merv Griffin, and has performed at the New York Improv comedy club.
Greenburg had small acting roles in several films he wrote, including Private Lessons, Private School, and I Could Never.... He also played John Clum in Doc (1971), the Frank Perry remake of Gunfight at the O.K. Corral.
