Lahr was born as Irving Lahrheim on August 13, 1895, at First Avenue and 81st Street, in the Yorkville section of Upper East Side of Manhattan, New York City. He was the son of Jacob Lahrheim (1870–1947), an upholsterer, and … See more

Among his numerous Broadway roles, Lahr starred as Skid in the Broadway revival of Burlesque from 1946 to 1948 and played several roles, including Queen Victoria, in the … See more

Lahr died on December 4, 1967, at the age of 72. Around the time of his death, he was filming The Night They Raided Minsky's. The official cause of death was listed as pneumonia. Lahr had been hospitalized on November 21 for what was reported as a back … See more

Lahr began performing in minor parts on vaudeville stages at age 14. He quit school at age 15 to join a juvenile vaudeville act. He … See more

Lahr made his feature film debut in 1931's Flying High, playing the oddball aviator he had played on stage. He signed with New York-based Educational Pictures for a series of two-reel comedies. When that series ended, he went to Hollywood to work in feature … See more

Lahr occasionally appeared on television, including NBC's live version of the Cole Porter musical Let's Face It (1954), the 1964 Hallmark Hall of Fame production of The Fantasticks, … See more

Lahr's first wife, Mercedes Delpino, developed mental health problems that left her hospitalized. This complicated his relationship with his second wife, Mildred Schroeder, as he … See more