ERWIN LERNER

LERNER--Erwin H.

Born in the Bronx and a longtime resident of Greenwich Village, playwright Erwin Lerner died February 8 at age 81. He was a Korean War Vet, immensely proud of his Air Force service as a cryptographer. Handsome, smart, and funny, Erwin wrote plays that were produced to acclaim on radio and off-off Broadway. His life's work was a screenplay about Odilo Globocnik, an SS officer responsible for monstrous atrocities in forced labor and extermination camps during WWII. To Erwin's eternal sorrow, at the time of his death he had not yet found a producer, although the screenplay was a finalist in several competitions. and his seminal research has been cited internationally in scholarly publications. Erwin died at home after a long struggle with emphysema, leaving his wife, Mary Phillips; daughters Jessica (son-in-law John Budd) and Kim; and grandchildren Sarah, Kyra, and Ryan. Funeral services will be held Tuesday, February 14, at 10:30am at the Greenwich Village Funeral Home, 199 Bleecker Street. Donations may be made in Erwin's name to the Morton Street Block Association, PO Box 20136, West Village Station, NY, NY 10014.