Jose Fernandez (1948-1994) actor and playwright
Born in Havana, Cuban Jose Fernandez (or José Fernández in his home country) began his theatrical career as an actor in New York on Broadway. For his play in The Me Nobody Knows Fernandez received the Variety Critics Poll Nomination as well as Best Actor. He also starred in various other well-known Broadway musicals including Hair, Truckload and Two Gentlemen of Verona.
Fernandez' career as a writer was launched with producer Kenneth Waissman's off-Broadway musical El Bravo!. He wrote two plays called Debut (quite appropriately) and Manny, followed by a television series pilot that never took off.
His best known comedy is called XYZ Examine Your Zippers. From 1984 to 1989, Fernandez collaborated with David de Silva to transform the script of the movie and television series Fame into a successful musical.
Jose Fernandez died from AIDS on January 8, 1994.