Len Lesser

Early life

Lesser was born in the Bronx in 1922. His father, a grocer, was a Jewish immigrant from Poland. Lesser received his bachelor's degree from the City College of New York in 1942 at the age of 19. Lesser enlisted in the United States Army the day after the attack on Pearl Harbor, and served in the China Burma India Theater during World War II.

Career

Lesser was a prolific character actor in film, TV and on stage. He has appeared on American television steadily since 1955 on scores of TV classics such as That Girl, The Untouchables, Peter Gunn, Mr. Lucky, The Outer Limits, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Get Smart, Family Affair, The Monkees, Quincy, M.E., The Rockford Files, The Amazing Spider-Man, Mad About You, All in the Family, Boy Meets World, Smart Guy, My Favorite Martian, The Munsters, and Castle. He appeared in a variety of films such as Birdman of Alcatraz (1962), How to Stuff a Wild Bikini (1965), Kelly's Heroes (1970), Blood and Lace (1971), Dirty Little Billy (1972), Papillon (1973), Truck Stop Women (1974), The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976), Supervan (1977), Moonshine County Express (1977), Ruby (1977), Death Hunt (1981), Take This Job and Shove It (1981), Grandmother's House (1988) and Baadasssss! (2003).

Later years

Lesser had a recurring role on Everybody Loves Raymond as "Garvin", a friend of Frank Barone, who always lifted his arms in excitement whenever he saw Ray (just as Lesser did in his recurring role on Seinfeld as "Uncle Leo" whenever he saw his nephew, Jerry). He also appeared in Jeff Seymour's critically acclaimed stage production of Cold Storage at the University of Toronto's George Ignatieff Theatre.

Death

On February 16, 2011, Lesser died of cancer-related pneumonia in Burbank, California, at the age of 88.

After learning of Lesser's death, Jerry Seinfeld said of him, "Len was one of our favorites. We always loved having him on the show. I'll never forget when Uncle Leo was in prison and tattooed 'Jerry Hello' on his knuckles. He was a very sweet guy." Another Seinfeld castmate, Jason Alexander, tweeted,

Thanks to all of you for your kind remarks re: Len Lessor [sic]. Tonight was the opening of Gigi at my beloved Reprise Theater Company and I've only returned at this late hour to hear the news. ... "Hellooo" Uncle Leo. And goodbye. Sleep well. Much love. Jason.