Tom Jones (writer) Obituary

Tom Jones was an American lyricist and librettist. Tom Jones died of cancer on August 11, 2023, at the age of 95

He died Friday at his home in Sharon, Connecticut, according to Dan Shaheen, a co-producer of “The Fantasticks,” who worked with Jones since the 1980s.

Tom Jones was born on February 17, 1928, in Littlefield, Texas. His most well-known work is The Fantasticks, which ran off-Broadway from 1960 to 2002, and the hit song “Try to Remember” from the same.

Other songs from The Fantasticks include “Soon It’s Gonna Rain”, “Much More”, and “I Can See It”. He also penned the screenplay for the 1995 feature-film adaptation.

Jones appeared in and directed a revival of The Fantasticks in New York City. He performed the Old Actor in the show from its inception in 1960 to its closing on June 6, 2010. In the show, he was credited as Thomas Bruce.

Tom Jones, who collaborated with composer Harvey Schmidt on “The Fantasticks” as well as the Broadway plays “110 in the Shade” and “I Do! I Do!,” was elected into the American Theatre Hall of Fame in 1998.