Leonard Alfred Schneider, popularly known as Lenny Bruce, was a notable American stand-up comedian, satirist, and social critic. Even in his short career, he was considered an iconoclast and his material for the era he performed in, was deemed groundbreaking. He was popular for voicing out his beliefs through comedy as he was open about sex and vulgarity, and critical of politics and religion. His performances with such topics were considered obscene, immoral and harmful. This led to his multiple arrests despite his popularity; he was later blacklisted by many networks and finally the number of shows he performed decreased. He, however, remained a voice of the underdog and continued to hold his stand till his death. His conviction for an obscenity trial was posthumously pardoned by the Governor. This action is considered to be one among the cornerstones of freedom of speech in the United States as it inspired many other comedians to use a similar style. He is often credited to have single-handedly revolutionized stand-up routines by infusing political satire and attacking conventional norms. His idealistic humor is cherished even to this day.
