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Buddy Hackett (born Leonard Hacker, August 31, 1924 – June 30, 2003) was an American comedian and actor. Hackett was born in Brooklyn, New York, New York, the son of a Jewish upholsterer. He grew up on 54th and 14th Ave in Borough Park, Brooklyn, across from Public School 103 (now a yeshiva). Living next door was a yet-to-be-famous aspiring baseball player named Sandy Koufax. He graduated from New Utrecht High School in 1942. While still a student, he began performing in nightclubs in the Catskills Borscht Belt resorts. He appeared first at the Golden Hotel in Hurleyville, New York, and... MORE

Buddy Hackett (born Leonard Hacker, August 31, 1924 – June 30, 2003) was an American comedian and actor. Hackett was born in Brooklyn, New York, New York, the son of a Jewish upholsterer. He grew up on 54th and 14th Ave in Borough Park, Brooklyn, across from Public School 103 (now a yeshiva). Living next door was a yet-to-be-famous aspiring baseball player named Sandy Koufax. He graduated from New Utrecht High School in 1942. While still a student, he began performing in nightclubs in the Catskills Borscht Belt resorts. He appeared first at the Golden Hotel in Hurleyville, New York, and he claimed he did not get one single laugh. Hackett enlisted in the United States Army during World War II and served in an anti-aircraft battery. Hackett's first job after the war was at the Pink Elephant, a Brooklyn club. It was here that he changed his name from Leonard Hacker to Buddy Hackett. He made appearances in Los Angeles and Las Vegas, and continued to perform in the Catskills. He acted on Broadway, in Lunatics and Lovers, where Max Liebman saw him and put him in two television specials. Hackett did ba-lert. In the late 1940s, Hackett's friend, Jules White, asked him if he would like to LESS