Father Flotski's Triumph - the players

For those not into old black and white films, here are the characters Lenny had in mind for Father Flotski's Triumph.

Daniel L. Haynes' singing scene from The Last Mile (1932)

Frankie Darro in Boys' Reformatory (1939)

George E. Stone in The Last Mile (1932)

Charles Bickford and Barton MacLane in Mutiny In The Big House (1939)

Nat Pendleton and Warren Hymer in Jail House Blues (1942)

The Warden: Hume Cronyn

The handsome but mixed up prison doctor, H. B. Warner

Father Flotski - Pat O'Brien

and Arthur Shields

...for Swiss Colony Wine

Wallis Simpson and the King who gave it all up for her

Ann Dvorak and her two hooker friends...

Iris Adrian

and Glenda Farrell

Lenny's father Myron Schneider during WWII

By 1940 Myron had been divorced from Sally for seven years but was still living at their family home at 710 Hughes Street, Bellmore with Lenny and his new wife Dorothy.  Myron's brother Marc lived in nearby Freeport.

The house on Hughes Street, photographed by Jim Nightingale.

Before being drafted Myron was working in sales for Siegel & Fried at the Port Authority Building on Eighth Avenue, New York.  The shoe company owned 66 retail outlets under the name National Shoe Stores.  Dorothy was a stenographer.

1941 ad for National Shoe Stores

The Port Authority building on Eighth Avenue

Myron filled out his draft card in 1940:

Myron began his service in the US Army on 10 June 1942, serving at the POW camp in Fort Meade, Maryland.  It was used as a temporary detention centre for German, Italian and Japanese POWs before they were shipped off to other locations. 

The POWs could earn these coupons to spend on site.  A multinational system used widely in the earlier Great War to prevent prisoners from having cash to bribe guards or escape with. 

While still serving at Fort Meade, Myron formally became a US Citizen on the 27th March 1944 and was discharged from service on the 23rd December that year.

Everything is Bellmore

710 Hughes Street, Bellmore
Photo by Jim Nightingale

Family photo published in Rogue magazine

Sally Marr, 1998, interviewed for Swear To Tell The Truth:  "I think Lenny was very attached, and did a lot of crying if I had to go somewhere and say 'my neighbour she'll take...' 'no no no, I wanna go with you!' Well I didn't know what the word insecure meant, I'd never heard the word.  But that's probably what it was, he didn't feel safe with anybody unless it was with me."

Family photo broadcast on Swear To Tell The Truth.

Lenny Bruce routine: 

"Nobody wants to go back to the room alone.  They never wanna go home unless they can say 'ma, gimme a glass of water'.  'cause I don't want the water, all I want is the water with your hand attached to the glass, with your arm attached to the hand and stay here!  And when I go to sleep don't sneak out, 'cause when I wake up I wanna see you there all the time.  And if you stay here all night then I'll drink as much water as you want me to drink."

Is This Really Lenny Bruce?

Published in the LA Free Press, 1965.

From the collection of Ralph Gleason.
Published in the liner notes for The Real Lenny Bruce.