Sally Marr

Sally Marr (December 30, 1906 – December 14, 1997) was an American stand-up comic, dancer and actress who is best known as being the mother of legendary comic Lenny Bruce, whose act she influenced. Born Sadie Kitchenberg in Jamaica, Queens, New York, Marr married Bruce's father, the British-born Myron (Mickey) Schneider, who was a shoe clerk, when she was 17 years old. She divorced Schneider when her son Leonard was either five or eight years old. Marr started out in show business as a dancer, necessitating that Lenny had to be brought up by relatives when he was young. Eventually, Lenny moved back in with her, and she supported them as a single-mother working as a maid and a waitress. She developed a night-club act based on impersonating movie stars and became a stand-up comic. After World War II, her son Lenny launched his own career in stand-up comedy, imitating his mother and then developing his own routines, many of which dealt with his life with his mother. Marr said in an interview in 1989 "People are always saying that everything in comedy stems from Lenny -- that everything touches him. What can I tell you? He took after me!" In addition to her work as a comic and an actress, Marr served as a talent spotter. She discovered Tommy Chong, Cheech Marin, Pat Morita, and Sam Kinison. Sally Marr died on December 14, 1997, in Los Angeles.