Salerno, Steve

PERSONAL:

Born in Brooklyn, NY; son of Frank (in aeronautics) and Yolanda (a bank floor supervisor) Salerno; married, 1975; wife's name Kathy. Education: Brooklyn College of the City University of New York, B.A. (cum laude), 1972. Hobbies and other interests: Amateur baseball player.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Macungie, PA.

CAREER:

Worked in sales, New York, NY, 1972-82; freelance writer, 1982—. Indiana University at Bloomington, visiting professor and holder of Riley Chair in Magazine Journalism, 1996-2000; Muhlenberg College, adjunct professor and writer in residence, 2000-05. American Legion, Indianapolis, IN, publisher and editor in chief, 1994-97; Men's Health Books, Emmaus, PA, executive editor, 2000-01. Also performs as a jazz musician and music arranger, including appearances at nightclubs in New York, NY, and elsewhere. Guest on numerous media programs. Youth baseball and football coach.

WRITINGS:

TNS: The Newest Profession, William Morrow (New York, NY), 1985.

Deadly Blessing (nonfiction), William Morrow (New York, NY), 1987.

SHAM: How the Self-Help Movement Made America Helpless, Crown Publishing Group (New York, NY), 2005.

Contributor of more than 400 articles to periodicals, including Harper's, New York Times Magazine, Esquire, Sports Illustrated, Playboy, New Republic, Good Housekeeping, Reader's Digest, World and I, and Wall Street Journal.

ADAPTATIONS:

The book Deadly Blessing, about the murder of Texas politician Price Daniel, Jr., was adapted as a television movie titled Bed of Lies, aired by American Broadcasting Companies in 1992.

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Publishers Weekly, May 27, 2005, review of SHAM: How the Self-Help Movement Made America Helpless.