Lenny Bruce
Who Lenny Bruce is
Stand-up comedian, social critic and satirist whose free-wheeling act mixed satire, politics, religion, sex and vulgarity. Repeatedly arrested for obscenity, he was convicted in New York in 1964 and pardoned posthumously in 2003, a landmark in American free-speech history; his recordings include The Sick Humor of Lenny Bruce and his midnight Carnegie Hall concert of February 1961.
At a glance
- Born
- 1925
- Died
- 1966
- Style
- Free speech, Free-form provocation, Counterculture, Political
- Stand-up specials
- One Night Stand: The World of Lenny Bruce and The Lenny Bruce Performance Film
- Albums
- Interviews of Our Times, The Sick Humor of Lenny Bruce, I Am Not a Nut, Elect Me! and 3 more
- Podcasts
- How to Talk Dirty and Influence People
- On screen
- The Steve Allen Show, Playboy's Penthouse, Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts and 4 more
Specials, shows and podcasts
Stand-up specials
- One Night Stand: The World of Lenny Bruce 1959, TV special
- The Lenny Bruce Performance Film 1967, filmed in San Francisco
Albums
- Interviews of Our Times 1958
- The Sick Humor of Lenny Bruce 1959
- I Am Not a Nut, Elect Me! 1960
- American 1961
- The Berkeley Concert 1969
- Carnegie Hall 1972
On screen
- The Steve Allen Show guest, 1959
- Playboy's Penthouse guest, 1959
- Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts radio, early career
- Dance Hall Racket Vincent; also writer, 1953
- Dream Follies Willie / The Foreign Chef; also writer, 1954
- The Rocket Man screenwriter, 1954
- Thank You Mask Man the Lone Ranger, voice; also writer and director, 1971
Podcasts
- How to Talk Dirty and Influence People autobiography, 1967
Comedians like Lenny Bruce
Each linked to them by something on the record — a stage they both came through, a bill, a show, a style or a home town.
- Jackie Mason also in The Steve Allen Show
- Shelley Berman also in The Steve Allen Show
Career timeline
- 1925Born
- 1953Dance Hall Racket (Vincent; also writer, 1953) On screen
- 1954Dream Follies (Willie / The Foreign Chef; also writer, 1954) On screen
- 1954The Rocket Man (screenwriter, 1954) On screen
- 1958Interviews of Our Times (1958) Album
- 1959One Night Stand: The World of Lenny Bruce (1959, TV special) Special
- 1959The Steve Allen Show (guest, 1959) On screen
- 1959Playboy's Penthouse (guest, 1959) On screen
- 1959The Sick Humor of Lenny Bruce (1959) Album
- 1960I Am Not a Nut, Elect Me! (1960) Album
- 1961American (1961) Album
- 1966Died
- 1967The Lenny Bruce Performance Film (1967, filmed in San Francisco) Special
- 1967How to Talk Dirty and Influence People (autobiography, 1967) Book
- 1969The Berkeley Concert (1969) Album
- 1971Thank You Mask Man (the Lone Ranger, voice; also writer and director, 1971) On screen
- 1972Carnegie Hall (1972) Album
Questions about Lenny Bruce
What stand-up specials has Lenny Bruce released?
One Night Stand: The World of Lenny Bruce and The Lenny Bruce Performance Film.
What podcast do they host?
How to Talk Dirty and Influence People.
What TV shows and films are they in?
The Steve Allen Show, Playboy's Penthouse, Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts, Dance Hall Racket, Dream Follies and The Rocket Man, among 7 credits.
Who are some comedians like them?
Jackie Mason (also in The Steve Allen Show) and Shelley Berman (also in The Steve Allen Show).
The full SUCDb record
The full record — the career in order, the specials and credits, and the sources for each — is on SUCDb, with their place on the Legends ballots.
Sources
- Wikipedia — Lenny Bruce ↗ Birth and death years, obscenity conviction (1964) and pardon (2003), albums, TV appearances, filmography, autobiography
Updated 5 October 2026 · the record checked 27 September 2026