Casey was born in Yonkers, New York, and attended Syracuse University. During the late ’50s, he learned all about “greasers” while working as an art teacher in upstate New York. He moved to Chicago in 1962, where he hoped to pursue an acting career. He appeared in dozens of productions, including creating the role of Bernie Litko in David Mamet’s Sexual Perversity in Chicago. He supported himself with jobs in retail, including working as an assistant manager of a chain of apparel stores, and as a record salesman. In the meantime, he taught himself how to play the guitar and began writing songs. Mr. Casey acted with the Chicago Stage Guild (where he met Jim Jacobs), the Old Town Players, and the Kinston Mines Theatre. The latter company staged the original production of GREASE which he wrote with Jim Jacobs. After the incredible success of both the musical and the movie, the two collaborated on Island of Lost Coeds, a musical satire of the 8-movies of the 1950s. Mr. Casey died in 1988.
