Buddy Lester

Biography

Buddy Lester was an American actor and comedian who built a long career playing character parts in film and television, and who was also a stand-up fixture on the international nightclub circuit. Born in Chicago, he started in variety shows there at seven alongside his older brother Jerry, and after Navy service in World War II he moved into movies and TV as an established stage and radio performer. His first screen role was as himself, a nightclub entertainer, in The Gene Krupa Story. He became a regular in Jerry Lewis comedies, among them The Patsy (1964), The Ladies Man (1961), The Nutty Professor (1963), Three on a Couch (1966), Hardly Working (1980) and The Big Mouth (1967). He also played Vince Massler in Ocean's Eleven (1960), and on television he appeared on The New Phil Silvers Show, Gomer Pyle, USMC, Dragnet, Adam-12 and Barney Miller. He continued acting through the mid 1980s.

87years old at death

Born January 16, 1915Chicago
Died October 4, 2002Los Angeles
Star sign: CapricornThe sign runs December 22 to January 19

Movie Career

Films: 9
Career span: 23 years1960 to 1983

Genres

Comedy100%, 9 films
Crime22%, 2 films
Action11%, 1 film
Romance11%, 1 film
Sci-Fi11%, 1 film

First and latest

Did you know?!

First role
Lester's first film role came in 1959, when he appeared as himself, a nightclub entertainer, in the movie The Gene Krupa Story.

Buddy Lester movies on Netflix

Smorgasbord1983IMDb rating 5.7as Passenger
Hardly Working1980IMDb rating 4.7as Claude Reed
The Party1968IMDb rating 7.4as Davey Kane
The Big Mouth1967IMDb rating 5.5as Studs
Three on a Couch1966IMDb rating 5.8as Drunk
The Patsy1964IMDb rating 6.2as Copa Café MC
The Nutty Professor1963IMDb rating 6.6as Bartender
The Ladies Man1961IMDb rating 6.3as Willard C. Gainsborough
Ocean's Eleven1960IMDb rating 6.5as Vince Massler

Best known for

The films on Netflix they are best known for, with the part played in each.

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The Party1968 Comedyas Davey Kane
IMDb rating 7.448K votes
Ocean's Eleven1960 Comedy, Crime, Thrilleras Vince Massler
IMDb rating 6.526K votes
The Ladies Man1961as Willard C. Gainsborough
IMDb rating 6.35.2K votes
The Big Mouth1967as Studs
IMDb rating 5.51.5K votes
The Nutty Professor1963as Bartender
IMDb rating 6.620K votes
Hardly Working1980as Claude Reed
IMDb rating 4.71.0K votes
Three on a Couch1966as Drunk
IMDb rating 5.81.3K votes
Smorgasbord1983as Passenger
IMDb rating 5.71.2K votes

Most often with

Jerry Lewis directed seven of these films. Jerry Lewis appears in seven of them, more than any other actor. Pick a number on the chart or a name in the list to see the films they share.

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Jerry Lewis

Kathleen Freeman

Del Moore

Sammy Davis Jr.

Steve Franken

Harold J. Stone

Jerry LewisDirector, 7 films

Films together

Jerry Lewis7 films together, 1961 to 1983
Jerry Lewis's page
- Smorgasbord1983IMDb rating 5.7Lester as PassengerLewis as Warren Nefron / Dr. Perks / Gangster / Speed Armeter
- Hardly Working1980IMDb rating 4.7Lester as Claude ReedLewis as Bo Hooper
- The Big Mouth1967IMDb rating 5.5Lester as StudsLewis as Gerald Clamson / Syd Valentine
- Three on a Couch1966IMDb rating 5.8Lester as DrunkLewis as Christopher Pride / Warren / Ringo / Rutherford / Heather
- The Patsy1964IMDb rating 6.2Lester as Copa Café MCLewis as Stanley Belt
- The Nutty Professor1963IMDb rating 6.6Lester as BartenderLewis as Professor Julius F. Kelp / Buddy Love / Baby Kelp
- The Ladies Man1961IMDb rating 6.3Lester as Willard C. GainsboroughLewis as Herbert H. Heebert / Mama Heebert
Kathleen Freeman3 films together, 1961 to 1966
Kathleen Freeman's page
- Three on a Couch1966IMDb rating 5.8Lester as DrunkFreeman as Murphy
- The Nutty Professor1963IMDb rating 6.6Lester as BartenderFreeman as Millie Lemmon
- The Ladies Man1961IMDb rating 6.3Lester as Willard C. GainsboroughFreeman as Katie
Del Moore3 films together, 1963 to 1967
Del Moore's page
- The Big Mouth1967IMDb rating 5.5Lester as StudsMoore as Mr. Hodges
- The Patsy1964IMDb rating 6.2Lester as Copa Café MCMoore as Policeman
- The Nutty Professor1963IMDb rating 6.6Lester as BartenderMoore as Dr. Hamius R. Warfield
Sammy Davis Jr.2 films together, 1960 to 1983
Sammy Davis Jr.'s page
- Smorgasbord1983IMDb rating 5.7Lester as PassengerDavis as Himself
- Ocean's Eleven1960IMDb rating 6.5Lester as Vince MasslerDavis as Josh Howard
Steve Franken2 films together, 1968 to 1980
Steve Franken's page
- Hardly Working1980IMDb rating 4.7Lester as Claude ReedFranken as Steve Torres
- The Party1968IMDb rating 7.4Lester as Davey KaneFranken as Levinson
Harold J. Stone2 films together, 1967 to 1980
Harold J. Stone's page
- Hardly Working1980IMDb rating 4.7Lester as Claude ReedStone as Frank Loucazi
- The Big Mouth1967IMDb rating 5.5Lester as StudsStone as Thor
Jerry LewisDirector, 7 films, 1961 to 1983
All films by Jerry Lewis
- Smorgasbord1983IMDb rating 5.7Lester as Passenger
- Hardly Working1980IMDb rating 4.7Lester as Claude Reed
- The Big Mouth1967IMDb rating 5.5Lester as Studs
- Three on a Couch1966IMDb rating 5.8Lester as Drunk
- The Patsy1964IMDb rating 6.2Lester as Copa Café MC
- The Nutty Professor1963IMDb rating 6.6Lester as Bartender
- The Ladies Man1961IMDb rating 6.3Lester as Willard C. Gainsborough
Also two films together2 more actors
- Paul LambertSmorgasbord (1983) and The Big Mouth (1967)
- Leonard StoneHardly Working (1980) and The Big Mouth (1967)
When several people share the same number of films, the ones with the most films on Netflix are in the chart.

Online

Official profiles and reference pages.

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