īruce was a roommate of comedian Buddy Hackett in the 1950s. Through Perilli, Bruce met and collaborated with photojournalist William Karl Thomas on three screenplays ( Leather Jacket, Killer's Grave and The Degenerate), none of which made it to the screen, and the comedy material on his first three comedy albums. In 1956, Frank Ray Perilli, a fellow nightclub comedian who later wrote two dozen successful films and plays, became Bruce's mentor and part-time manager. Career īruce's early comedy career included writing the screenplays for Dance Hall Racket in 1953, which featured Bruce, his wife Honey Harlow, and mother Sally Marr Dream Follies in 1954, a low-budget burlesque romp and a children's film, The Rocket Man, in 1954. Lenny did a piece inspired by Sid Caesar, "The Bavarian Mimic", featuring impressions of American movie stars (e.g., Humphrey Bogart, James Cagney, and Edward G. He was later a guest-and was introduced by his mother, calling herself Sally Bruce-on the Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts radio program. Soon afterward, in 1947, just after changing his last name to Bruce, he earned $12 and a free spaghetti dinner for his first stand-up performance in Brooklyn. īruce took the stage as "Lenny Marsalle" one evening at the Victory Club as a stand-in master of ceremonies for one of his mother's shows. He also gained notoriety for his focus on controversial subjects, black humour, obscenity, and criticism of organized religion and the establishment. According to Bruce's biographer Albert Goldman, Ancis's humor involved stream-of-consciousness sexual fantasies and references to jazz. Many of Bruce's later routines reflected his meticulous schooling at the hands of Ancis. One place where they congregated was Hanson's, a diner where Bruce met Joe Ancis, who had a profound influence on Bruce's approach to comedy. However, he found it difficult to differentiate himself from the thousands of other show business hopefuls who populated the city. Īfter a short period living with his father in California, Bruce settled in New York City, hoping to establish himself as a comedian. In 1959, while videotaping the first episode of Hugh Hefner's Playboy's Penthouse, Bruce talked about his Navy experience and showed a tattoo he received in Malta in 1942. ĭuring the Korean War era, Bruce served in the United States Merchant Marine, ferrying troops from the US to Europe and back. by reason of unsuitability for the naval service". However, he had not admitted to or been found guilty of any breach of naval regulations, and successfully applied to change his discharge to "Under Honorable Conditions. He defiantly convinced his ship's medical officer that he was experiencing homosexual urges, leading to his dishonorable discharge in July 1945. In May 1945, after a comedic performance for his shipmates in which he was dressed in drag, his commanding officers became upset. Īfter spending time working on a farm, Bruce joined the United States Navy at the age of 16 in 1942, with active service during World War II aboard the USS Brooklyn (CL-40) in Northern Africa, Palermo in 1943, and Anzio, Italy, in 1944. His mother, Sally Marr (legal name Sadie Schneider, born Sadie Kitchenberg), was a stage performer and dancer and had an enormous influence on Bruce's career. His British-born father, Myron (Mickey) Schneider, was a shoe clerk they saw each other very infrequently. His parents divorced before he was 10, and he lived with various relatives over the next decade. According to his biography, during part of his high school years, he lived at Dengler's Farm on Wantagh Avenue in Wantagh, New York. He grew up in nearby Bellmore, and attended Wellington C. ![]() Early life īruce was Jewish, born Leonard Alfred Schneider in Mineola, New York. In 2017, Rolling Stone magazine ranked him third (behind Richard Pryor and George Carlin) on its list of the 50 best stand-up comics of all time. His trial for obscenity was a landmark of freedom of speech in the United States. īruce paved the way for counterculture-era comedians. His 1964 conviction in an obscenity trial was followed by a posthumous pardon in 2003. He was renowned for his open, free-wheeling, and critical style of comedy which contained satire, politics, religion, sex, and vulgarity. ![]() Leonard Alfred Schneider (Octo– August 3, 1966), better known by his stage name Lenny Bruce, was an American stand-up comedian, social critic, and satirist.
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