Len Lesser, Seinfeld's Uncle Leo, Dies

Character actor who after Seinfeld was the go-to for playing a funny-old-guy type was 88

By Natalie Finn Feb 17, 2011 3:00 AMTags

Uncle Leo always had a hearty "hello!" for his nephew Jerry.

Len Lesser, the character actor who was most recognizable for popping up on Seinfeld, be it to shirk a gambling debt or get his eyebrows blown off, died Wednesday of complications from cancer-related pneumonia. He was 88.

His crack comic timing led to other roles as a cantankerous old-man type in Mad About You, Boy Meets World, Everybody Loves Raymond, ER and, most recently, Castle.

The New York City native's career got rolling, however, on shows like The Munsters, The Monkees and Get Smart, and he had small parts on the big screen, as well, in Papillon, Outlaw Josey Whales and Bird Man of Alcatraz.

Lesser, an Army vet who served in World War II, is survived by a son and a daughter, as well as three grandchildren.