By the Los Angeles Times
LOS ANGELES — Len Lesser, 88, a veteran character actor known for his recurring role in the 1990s as Uncle Leo on the hit NBC-TV comedy “Seinfeld,” died Wednesday in Burbank, publicist Laura Stegman said. He had pneumonia and cancer.
Starting in the early 1950s, Lesser built a reputation for mostly playing the heavy in dozens of movies and hundreds of TV appearances while nurturing his love of the theater. But the bald, hook-nosed actor took his career to a higher plane once he established himself as Jerry Seinfeld’s annoying Uncle Leo, with his trademark greeting “Hello!”
Born Dec. 3, 1922, in New York, Lesser received a bachelor’s degree in economics and government from the City College of New York in 1942. He served in the Army during World War II, then returned to New York to study acting.
He also had a recurring role in the CBS sitcom “Everybody Loves Raymond” as Garvin, a friend of Raymond’s father.
