Irving Levin (April 26, 1925 – September 18, 2021), known professionally by his stage name of Leo De Lyon, was an American actor best known for his role as Spook and Brain in the prime time animated series ''

Top Cat ''Top Cat'' is an American animated sitcom produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and originally broadcast in prime time on the ABC network. It aired in a weekly evening time slot from September 27, 1961, to April 18, 1962, for a single season of ...

''.

Career

De Lyon made his debut as a stand-up comedian on ''

Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts ''Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts'' (also known as ''Talent Scouts'') was an American radio and television variety show which ran on CBS from 1946 until 1958. Sponsored by Lipton Tea, it starred Arthur Godfrey, who was also hosting '' Arthur Godf ...

'' in 1947. He later co-starred with

Bob Haymes Robert William Haymes (March 29, 1923 – January 27, 1989), also known by the stage names Robert Stanton and Bob Stanton, was an American singer, songwriter, actor and radio and television host. He is best remembered for co-writing the song " Th ...

and

Dorothy Loudon Dorothy Loudon (September 17, 1925 – November 15, 2003) was an American actress and singer. She won the Tony Award for Best Lead Actress in a Musical in 1977 for her performance as Miss Hannigan in ''Annie''. Loudon was also nominated for To ...

in the

DuMont Television Network The DuMont Television Network (also known as the DuMont Network, DuMont Television, simply DuMont/Du Mont, or (incorrectly) Dumont ) was one of America's pioneer commercial television networks, rivaling NBC and CBS for the distinction of being ...

sitcom '' It's a Business'' (March–May 1952). His specialty on this show was singing and whistling two different tunes - notably the ''Farandole'' from

Georges Bizet Georges Bizet (; 25 October 18383 June 1875) was a French composer of the Romantic music, Romantic era. Best known for his operas in a career cut short by his early death, Bizet achieved few successes before his final work, ''Carmen'', whi ...

's '' Arlesienne Suite'' - at the same time. He appeared at the

London Palladium The London Palladium () is a Grade II* West End theatre located on Argyll Street, London, in the famous area of Soho. The theatre holds 2,286 seats. Of the roster of stars who have played there, many have televised performances. Between 1955 an ...

in 1956 with the

Platters The Platters was an American vocal group formed in 1952. They are one of the most successful vocal groups of the early rock and roll era. Their distinctive sound bridges the pre-rock Tin Pan Alley tradition and the new burgeoning genre. The ac ...

and

Lonnie Donegan Anthony James Donegan (29 April 1931 – 3 November 2002), known as Lonnie Donegan, was a British skiffle singer, songwriter and musician, referred to as the "King of Skiffle", who influenced 1960s British pop and rock musicians. Born in Scotl ...

. In 1962, he did a character voice on a recording of a song written by

Al Lerner Alfred Lerner (May 8, 1933 – October 23, 2002) was an American businessman. He was best known as the chair of the board of credit-card giant MBNA and the owner of the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League. He was also a past presid ...

for a young artist named David Lucas for

Doris Day Doris Day (born Doris Mary Kappelhoff; April 3, 1922 – May 13, 2019) was an American actress, singer, and activist. She began her career as a big band singer in 1939, achieving commercial success in 1945 with two No. 1 recordings, " Sent ...

and husband Marty Melcher's Arwin Records. The song was performed by Pookie and Hippy of '' The Soupy Sales Show''. Leo did a fabulous "Guttural" hook "Uga Uga Boola, Uga Boola Boola Uga". He also voiced Flunkey the baboon in Disney's ''

Jungle Book ''The Jungle Book'' (1894) is a collection of stories by the English author Rudyard Kipling. Most of the characters are animals such as Shere Khan the tiger and Baloo the bear, though a principal character is the boy or "man-cub" Mowgli, who ...

'' (1967). He also recorded a 45 rpm release (date unknown; probably early 1960s) for

Musicor Records Musicor Records was a New York City-based record label, active during the 1960s and 1970s. The label was founded by songwriter Aaron Schroeder and distributed by United Artists Records. In 1965, UA employee and A&R man Arthur Talmadge (a co-fo ...

(distributed by

United Artists Records United Artists Records was an American record label founded by Max E. Youngstein of United Artists in 1957 to issue movie soundtracks. The label expanded into other genres, such as easy listening, jazz, pop, and R&B. History Genres In 1959, ...

), label number 1001, under Leo DeLyon and the Musclemen: "Sick Manny's Gym" (written by Alan Kooper)/ "Plunkin" (written by Alan Kooper and Eric Krackow). The Musclemen included Al Kooper on guitar and Eric Krackow on bass. In the mid- and late 1970s he performed on stage as pianist and vocal entertainer and was musical director for several artists such as

Sandler and Young Sandler and Young were an American musical duo from the 1960s through the 1980s, composed of Belgian singer Tony Sandler and native New Yorker Ralph Young. First success Sandler and Young appeared with Polly Bergen in her show at the Las Vegas ...

. In the mid 1990s he recorded several songs with Mark Harris who was a frequent guest on the Howard Stern Show. During the 1980s he returned to

Hanna-Barbera Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc. ( ) was an American animation studio and production company which was active from 1957 to 2001. It was founded on July 7, 1957, by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera following the decision of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to c ...

to provide guest voices on shows such as ''

The Smurfs ''The Smurfs'' (french: Les Schtroumpfs; nl, De Smurfen) is a Belgian comic franchise centered on a fictional colony of small, blue, humanoid creatures who live in mushroom-shaped houses in the forest. ''The Smurfs'' was first created and in ...

'' and ''

Paw Paws ''Paw Paws'' (also known as ''Paw Paw Bears'') is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions that first aired in 1985 and 1986. It debuted as part of the weekday/weekend morning programming block ''The Funtastic ...

''. He also once again voiced Brain and Spook in the television special ''

Top Cat and the Beverly Hills Cats ''Top Cat and the Beverly Hills Cats'' is a 1988 animated made-for-television film produced by Hanna-Barbera as part of the ''Hanna-Barbera Superstars 10'' series. The two-hour film was aired in broadcast syndication. The movie's plot is essential ...

''. He had been the last surviving cast member of ''Top Cat'' before his death. De Lyon retired from performing in 2011. He died on September 18, 2021, at the age of 96.

Film

*''

The Man Called Flintstone ''The Man Called Flintstone'' is a 1966 American animated musical comedy film produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and distributed by Columbia Pictures. The second film by Hanna-Barbera following ''Hey There, It's Yogi Bear!'' (1964), it was dir ...

'' - performer:"The Happy Sounds of Pareé" (1966) *''

The Jungle Book ''The Jungle Book'' (1894) is a collection of stories by the English author Rudyard Kipling. Most of the characters are animals such as Shere Khan the tiger and Baloo the bear, though a principal character is the boy or "man-cub" Mowgli, ...

'' - Flunkey (1967) (uncredited)

Television/Misc.

*''

Captain Kangaroo ''Captain Kangaroo'' is an American children's television series that aired weekday mornings on the American television network CBS for 29 years, from 1955 to 1984, making it the longest-running nationally broadcast children's television program ...

'' - episode - unknown - Moving Man (1956) *''

The Flintstones ''The Flintstones'' is an American animated sitcom produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions. The series takes place in a romanticized Stone Age setting and follows the activities of the titular family, the Flintstones, and their next-door neighb ...

'' - episode - The Beauty Contest (1961) ... John / Charles / Lucky / Lodge Member / Man #1 / Big Louie (1961) *''

'' - 30 episodes - Spook / The Brain (1961-1962) *''

Bewitched ''Bewitched'' is an American fantasy sitcom television series that originally aired for eight seasons on ABC from September 17, 1964, to March 25, 1972. It is about a witch who marries an ordinary mortal man and vows to lead the life of a typic ...

'' - episode - The Short Happy Circuit of Aunt Clara - Jenkins (1966) *''Jack and the Beanstalk'' - TV special - Woggle-Bird (1967) *''

The Incredible Hulk The Hulk is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in the debut issue of '' The Incredible Hulk'' (May 1962). In his comic book a ...

'' - episode - King of the Beach - Trainer (1981) *''

'' - Additional Voices (1985-1986) *''

'' - additional voices (1986) *''

Foofur ''Foofur'' is an American traditionally animated children's television series from ''Kissyfur'' creator Phil Mendez that was produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions with SEPP International S.A. Airing on NBC from 1986 to 1988, the show was about t ...

'' (1987) *''

'' - TV Movie - Brain / Spook (1988) *''Back to Hoagy's Alley: The Making of 'Top Cat - Video short - Himself (2004) *''Cool Cats in Interview Alley'' - Video short - Himself (2004)

References

External links

An Interview with Leo DeLyon, September 2012
*
Back to Hoagy's Alley - The Making Of Top Cat - hosted by Leo de Lyon
{{DEFAULTSORT:De Lyon, Leo 1925 births 2021 deaths 21st-century American Jews American male songwriters American male television actors American male voice actors American stand-up comedians Comedians from New York (state) Jewish American male actors Hanna-Barbera people Male actors from New York (state)