Lawrence Samuel Storch (January 8, 1923 – July 8, 2022)
Early life
Lawrence Samuel Storch was born in New York City on January 8, 1923, the son of Alfred Storch, a cabdriver and broker, and his wife, Sally Kupperman Storch, a telephone operator, jewelry-store owner and rooming-house operator.
The Washington Post reported that he was born in
the Bronx,
whereas
The New York Times reported that he was born in
Manhattan and
The Wall Street Journal reported that he was born on the Upper West Side.
His parents were observant
Jews.
He attended DeWitt Clinton High School in the Bronx with
Don Adams, who remained his lifelong friend. Storch said that, because of hard times in the
Great Depression, he never graduated from high school, instead finding work as a comic for $12 a week, opening for bandleader
Al Donahue at the band shell in Sheepshead Bay.
During World War II, he served in the United States Navy, where he was shipmates with Tony Curtis on the submarine tender .
Career
Performing
Storch was originally a comic. It led to guest appearances on dozens of television series:
Mannix;
Car 54, Where Are You?;
Hennesey;
Get Smart;
Sergeant Bilko;
Columbo;
CHiPs;
Fantasy Island;
McCloud;
Emergency!;
The Flying Nun;
Alias Smith and Jones;
The Alfred Hitchcock Hour;
That Girl;
I Dream of Jeannie;
Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.;
Gilligan's Island;
The Doris Day Show;
The Persuaders;
Love, American Style;
All in the Family;
and
Married... with Children.
His most famous role was from 1965 to 1967 as the scheming Corporal Randolph Agarn on the situation comedy F Troop, with Forrest Tucker, Ken Berry and Melody Patterson, for which he was nominated for an Emmy Award in 1967.
In 1975, Storch co-starred with Bob Burns (who wore a gorilla costume) and Forrest Tucker on the short-lived but popular Saturday morning children's show The Ghost Busters. He also appeared on The Love Boat, S1 E15 & S2 E9 (1978); was Al Bundy's childhood hero on Married... with Children (Al Bundy's daughter Kelly attended an acting school operated by Larry); and was a semi-regular on Car 54, Where Are You?. He co-starred on the short-lived series The Queen and I.
Variety show appearances
Storch appeared on many variety shows, including
Sonny and Cher,
Laugh-In,
Hollywood Squares,
Playboy After Dark, and
The Hollywood Palace, with several appearances on
The Ed Sullivan Show,
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, and
The Steve Allen Show.
Jackie Gleason asked Storch to fill in for him in the summer of 1953 while Gleason was on hiatus. It led to the 10-episode
The Larry Storch Show with guest stars including
Janet Blair, Risë Stevens,
Dick Haymes, and
Cab Calloway.
As an impressionist and voiceover actor
An impressionist, Storch recreated hundreds of voices and
ranging from
Muhammad Ali to
Claude Rains and voiced characters in many television and film animations, including
The Pink Panther Show,
Groovie Goolies,
The Inspector,
The Brady Kids,
Cool Cat,
Koko the Clown,
Treasure Island, and
Tennessee Tuxedo.
Storch worked with Mel Blanc and June Foray at Warner Bros.-Seven Arts, voicing characters such as Merlin the Magic Mouse and Cool Cat. He continued his association with Filmation as a voiceover actor in other series and films the company produced, including Journey Back to Oz (1972) where he voiced Amos, farmhand to Aunt Em and Uncle Henry.
Film appearances
Storch appeared in more than 25 Hollywood films, including
Gun Fever (1958),
Who Was That Lady? (1960),
40 Pounds of Trouble (1962),
Captain Newman, M.D. (1963),
Wild and Wonderful (1964),
Sex and the Single Girl (1964), and
The Great Race (1965). He also appeared in
Bus Riley's Back in Town (1965),
A Very Special Favor (1965),
That Funny Feeling, (1965),
The Great Bank Robbery (1969),
Airport 1975 (1974),
The Happy Hooker Goes to Washington (1977),
Record City (1978),
S.O.B (1981),
Fake-Out (1982),
Sweet Sixteen (1983), and
A Fine Mess (1986), as well as the cult sci-fi films
The Monitors (1969) and
Without Warning (1980). Tony Curtis and Storch reunited for a 2003 run of the musical version of
Some Like It Hot. In 2005, he worked with Anthony Michael Hall in
Funny Valentine and appeared in the documentary feature
The Aristocrats.
Stage work
After success in television and films, Storch returned to the New York stage, having first performed on the
Broadway theatre stage in the 1950s.
He received rave reviews for the Off-Broadway production of
Breaking Legs. Co-starring
Philip Bosco and
Vincent Gardenia, the show extended several times before going on the road. Storch appeared in the Broadway productions of
Porgy and Bess (which Storch considered his favorite),
Arsenic and Old Lace with
Jean Stapleton,
Marion Ross, and
Jonathan Frid, and
Annie Get Your Gun with
Reba McEntire. He toured the United States and Europe with
Porgy and Bess.
In 2004, he was in Sly Fox with Richard Dreyfuss and his old friend Irwin Corey. Larry, then 81 and "Professor" Corey, 90, did eight shows a week. In March 2008, Storch celebrated his 50th anniversary performing on Broadway. His first Broadway appearance had been Who Was That Lady I Saw You With, later made into a 1960 film starring Dean Martin and Tony Curtis, with Storch appearing.
Storch and Dark Shadows star Marie Wallace appeared in Love Letters by A. R. Gurney on June 24, 2012, a benefit performance for the Actor's Temple in New York City.
In the summer of 2012, Storch appeared in a benefit performance of Love Letters with actress Diana Sowle (best known for her role as Mrs. Bucket in the original Willy Wonka film) in Farmville, Virginia to benefit The Tom Mix Rangers.
Comedy LPs
Storch recorded a comedy LP,
Larry Storch at The Bon Soir, released by Jubilee Records in the 1960s. His other records include
Larry Storch Reads Philip Roth's Epstein and singles such as "Pooped" b/w "The Eighth Wonder Of The World" and a spoken-word cover of Fats Domino's "I'm Walkin'".
A month before he died, Storch recorded the blues song Drinkin' Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee with Mike Clark and his trio. The song was posthumously released soon after Storch’s passing.
Personal life
Storch married actress Norma Catherine Greve on July 10, 1961. They remained married until her death at age 81 on August 28, 2003. Both briefly appeared in the made-for-television movie
The Woman Hunter (1972). He had three children: a stepson, Lary May; a daughter, Candace Herman, the result of a brief encounter with his future wife, born in 1947 and placed for adoption (and later reunited); and a stepdaughter,
June Cross, born in 1954 to Norma and Jimmy Cross ("Stump" of the song-and-dance team Stump and Stumpy).
Storch's younger brother, Jay (1924–1987), was an actor/voiceover performer under the name Jay Lawrence.
Death
Larry Storch died at his home on the Upper West Side of Manhattan on July 8, 2022, at age 99. The
Associated Press reported that he died from natural causes.
reported that he died from complications of Alzheimer's disease.
Honors and tributes
Storch was nominated for a Primetime
Emmy Awards in 1967 for Outstanding Continued Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Comedy Series for
F Troop. Storch lost to childhood friend Don Adams that year. Storch said he later remarked to Adams, “You kept it on the block.”
An episode of Animaniacs titled "The Sound of Warners" features a banner that says "Larry Storch Days / Nov 13 & 14".
In Fort Lee, New Jersey, Mayor Mark Sokolich named Storch as honorary Mayor for a Day on June 1, 2014. Storch had previously been honored by the local film commission for performing at the Riviera nightclub, which had closed 60 years earlier.
A Golden Palm Star on the Palm Springs, California, Walk of Stars was dedicated to Storch in 2014.
Storch was named an honorary citizen of Passaic, New Jersey, on September 13, 2016. He also received a Navy Distinguished Service Medal to recognise his World War II service.
On January 14, 2019, The Lambs honored Storch with their Shepherd's Award.
Wild West City, an amusement park in New Jersey, renamed one of its storefronts “Larry Storch’s Silver Dollar Saloon” in his honor.
Storch was named an Honorary Friar in early 2019 at a ceremony with Dick Cavett at the New York Friars Club.
On his 97th birthday, Storch was presented with a Proclamation from the State of New York.
Filmography
|
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| Season 1 Episode 26: "An Out for Oscar" |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| Two shorts |
| |
| |
| |
| Two shorts |
| S3E1 Fly Me to the Moon |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| 10-12 episodes |
| TV movie |
| S1E10 Angie...Angie |
| Voice, TV movie |
| Voice |
| |
| Voice |
| S3E16 Oh Say Can You See |
| Voice |
| Negative Reaction |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| Voice, English version |
| |
| Voice |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| Episode: Something Larry This Way Comes (S9, E21) |
| |
| |
| Final Role |
|
Further reading
Articles
-
Leslie (November 11, 1942). "House Reviews: Olympia, Miami". Variety. p. 47
-
Huts. (January 16, 1946). "Night Club Reviews: Ciro's, Hollywood". Variety. p. 54
-
Mildred Martin (April 20, 1946). "Benny Goodman at Earle". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. 16
-
Elie. (May 8, 1946). "House Reviews: RKO, Boston". Variety. p. 62
-
Stal. (July 9, 1952). "Television Reviews: Cavalcade of Stars". Variety. p. 30
-
Karr, John (April 2, 1987). "Jim and Judy, Judy and Larry". Bay Area Reporter. pp. 29, 31
Books
External links
