Lenny Bruce

Birthday: 10/13/1925
Deathday: 8/3/1966
Place of birth: Mineola, New York, USA
Fame for: Acting
Also known as: Leonard Alfred Schneider

Biography

Leonard Alfred Schneider, better known by his stage name Lenny Bruce, was an American stand-up comedian, social critic, and satirist. He was renowned for his open, free-style and critical form of comedy which integrated satire, politics, religion, sex, and vulgarity. Branded a "sick comic", Bruce was essentially blacklisted from television, and when he did appear these performances was facilitated by fans like Hugh Hefner and Steve Allen. In 1951, Bruce met Honey Harlow, a stripper from Manila, Arkansas. They were married that same year, and Bruce was determined she would end her work as a stripper. Throughout the final decade of his life, Bruce was beset by severe drug addiction.