Lynn Lavner is an American comedian and musician from

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

. Much of her material is based around the facts that she is

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

and a

lesbian A lesbian is a homosexual woman or girl. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate nouns with female homosexu ...

. She is frequently billed as "America's Most

Politically Incorrect "Political correctness" (adjectivally "politically correct"; commonly abbreviated to P.C.) is a term used to describe language, policies, or measures that are intended to avoid offense or disadvantage to members of particular groups in society. ...

Entertainer." Lavner began her career in 1981 when she wrote the music to the lesbian-themed play ''Ladies! Don't Spit and Holler!'' After a showing of the play, a fan came up to her and asked if the soundtrack was available on the album. When Lavner told her it wasn't, the fan, who had recently inherited a large amount of money, offered to put up the money so the soundtrack could be adapted into an album. Lavner is also credited with writing the theme music - as well as starring in various segments - to the New York City-based public access program ''

Gay Morning America ''Gay Morning America'' was a weekly volunteer-run variety show that aired on Manhattan public-access cable for three seasons from 1983 to 1985. For the first two seasons, the show ran for one hour on Friday mornings from 7:30-8:30 am EST, and ...

'', which aired from 1983-1985. Lavner's musical style harkens back to

Tin Pan Alley Tin Pan Alley was a collection of History of music publishing, music publishers and songwriters in New York City that dominated the American popular music, popular music of the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Originally ...

pop. Lavner lists some of her major influences as

George Gershwin George Gershwin (; born Jacob Gershwine; September 26, 1898 – July 11, 1937) was an American composer and pianist whose compositions spanned jazz, popular music, popular and classical music. Among his best-known works are the songs "Swan ...

Irving Berlin Irving Berlin (born Israel Isidore Beilin; May 11, 1888 – September 22, 1989) was a Russian-born American composer and songwriter. His music forms a large part of the Great American Songbook. Berlin received numerous honors including an Acade ...

, and

Cole Porter Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became Standard (music), standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found success on Broadway the ...

. Lavner initially was inspired to begin playing piano by her father, who played to entertain company.

Discography

* ''Ladies! Don't Spit and Holler!'', 1981 (available on vinyl only) * ''Something Different'', 1983 (available on vinyl and cassette) * ''I'd Rather Be Cute'', 1986 (available on vinyl and cassette) * ''You Are What You Wear'', 1988 (available on CD, vinyl, and cassette) * ''Butch Fatale'', 1992 (available on CD and cassette)

References

External links

Tribute Page

Bandcamp
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lavner, Lynn Jewish American comedians Jewish American musicians Lesbian comedians American lesbian musicians Lesbian Jews American LGBTQ singers Living people Comedians from Queens, New York Musicians from Queens, New York Traditional pop music singers Year of birth missing (living people) 20th-century American comedians 21st-century American comedians Jewish women comedians 20th-century American LGBTQ people 21st-century American LGBTQ people 21st-century American Jews American LGBTQ comedians Lesbian singers