# Tom Lehrer is still alive! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 13, 2015, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tom-lehrer-is-still-alive/731044 "2015-09-13T03:13:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2015, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tom-lehrer-is-still-alive/731044/1 "2015-09-13T03:13:18Z")
[Apparently,](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Lehrer) no date of death being given. Wow! Here’s a curious thing: [While he did a bit about “Clementine,”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1b3coO_6MwY) speculating about what the song “with no recognizable merit whatsoever” would have been if various non-folk musicians had done it, he appears to have completely overlooked the fact that “Clementine” scans perfectly to Beethoven’s or Schiller’s (or one of that crowd’s) [“Ode to Joy”](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ode_to_Joy). ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2015, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tom-lehrer-is-still-alive/731044/2 "2015-09-13T03:17:05Z")
He is about the same age as the king of Thailand, so he is just a pup. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2015, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tom-lehrer-is-still-alive/731044/3 "2015-09-13T04:32:44Z")
The secret to his long life - he’s never been married. 😃 Lehrer is going to die on the front page of the Times, I’m sure. They still refer to his songs in headlines. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2015, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tom-lehrer-is-still-alive/731044/4 "2015-09-13T05:05:31Z")
Many, many, MANY fine moments in my life were had listening to Mr. Lehrer’s performances. I’m not sure a single week went by without Dr. Demento playing one or another of his songs back in the late '70s and early '80s, and since my friends and I taped Dr. D’s shows every week, we all soon amassed quite a collection of Mr. Lehrer’s tunes. ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2015, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tom-lehrer-is-still-alive/731044/5 "2015-09-13T05:18:08Z")
Whatever he got from Agnes, I want some of that. Appears to extend life. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2015, 8:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tom-lehrer-is-still-alive/731044/6 "2015-09-13T08:46:22Z")
The burning question is: after all those years, are there any pigeons left in the park? ---
**Author:** ![Sangahyando](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f14d63/32.png) [@Sangahyando](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sangahyando)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2015, 8:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tom-lehrer-is-still-alive/731044/7 "2015-09-13T08:57:36Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > He is about the same age as the king of Thailand, so he is just a pup. They’re both “only” 87. The one – in a different creative field from Lehrer – whom I marvel at, is Herman Wouk (_Caine Mutiny_,_Winds of War_, etc.) : still with us at 100. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2015, 10:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tom-lehrer-is-still-alive/731044/8 "2015-09-13T10:10:49Z")
For all his great lyrics, perhaps his best line (one of the most brilliant I’ve ever heard) is: > [@](#): > > Political satire became obsolete when Henry Kissinger was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. ---
**Author:** ![bienville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4bbf92/32.png) [@bienville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bienville)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2015, 11:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tom-lehrer-is-still-alive/731044/9 "2015-09-13T11:02:39Z")
Well, the rest of us are still alive aren’t we? As he said, we will all go together when we go. For now, he’s still got copious free time. ---
**Author:** ![DrForrester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8edcca/32.png) [@DrForrester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrForrester)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2015, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tom-lehrer-is-still-alive/731044/10 "2015-09-13T12:19:53Z")
He put out a DVD of his performances, The Tom Lehrer Collection, the bulk of which apparently first surfaced on YouTube. There’s a little blurb in the booklet where he describes writing to the uploader of the video (aren’t you supposed to ask my permission?) - and that person’s amazement that he’s still alive. Rather weirdly, the only official promotional film ever made for one of his songs (Pollution) doesn’t appear on the DVD… So, perhaps he’s holding things back for another release. Maybe a 90th birthday gala? George Burns lived to be 100 - and had a gig booked for his birthday, although I don’t think it happened as planned. ---
**Author:** ![Julius\_Henry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/8797f3/32.png) [@Julius\_Henry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Julius_Henry)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2015, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tom-lehrer-is-still-alive/731044/11 "2015-09-13T23:41:16Z")
When Mozart was his age, he had been dead for 52 years. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2015, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tom-lehrer-is-still-alive/731044/12 "2015-09-13T23:59:56Z")
Damn! I lost my virginity one cold September night at a Renaissance festival with a bunch of guys singing Tom Lehrer around a campfire in the background! :o Less than a year later, I was at a folk festival on the Isle of Man, and a duo sang “Masochism Tango” to _thunderous_ applause. The Brits really do love his music! (Or at least they did, back in the '70s. Don’t know about today.) Way to go, Tom! 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tom-lehrer-is-still-alive/731044/13 "2015-09-14T00:14:08Z")
> [@Sangahyando](#): > > They’re both “only” 87. The one – in a different creative field from Lehrer – whom I marvel at, is Herman Wouk (_Caine Mutiny_,_Winds of War_, etc.) : still with us at 100. And covering another creative medium, there’s Mort Walker. He’s 92 years old and he’s been doing _Beetle Bailey_ for 65 years. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tom-lehrer-is-still-alive/731044/14 "2015-09-14T00:19:33Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Less than a year later, I was at a folk festival on the Isle of Man, and a duo sang “Masochism Tango” to _thunderous_ applause. The Brits really do love his music! (Or at least they did, back in the '70s. Don’t know about today.) FYI, a couple of years ago, I saw [Daniel Radcliffe (star of the Harry Potter films) performing The Elements song on Graham Norton’s chat show](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSAaiYKF0cs). ---
**Author:** ![Sangahyando](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f14d63/32.png) [@Sangahyando](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sangahyando)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 10:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tom-lehrer-is-still-alive/731044/15 "2015-09-14T10:29:34Z")
> [@Sangahyando](#): > > They’re both “only” 87. The one – in a different creative field from Lehrer – whom I marvel at, is Herman Wouk (_Caine Mutiny_,_Winds of War_, etc.) : still with us at 100. > [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > And covering another creative medium, there’s Mort Walker. He’s 92 years old and he’s been doing _Beetle Bailey_ for 65 years. Having the excuse of not being American: I’d never heard of Walker / Bailey – Googling was needed. _Beetle Bailey_ certainly seems like delightfully daft military fun – and, 65 years !! (I love the general “nonsense factor” of series / characters “frozen in time”; a favourite – whom I’ve probably mentioned before – Richmal Crompton’s naughty-schoolboy [anti]-hero William Brown: he stayed at the same age of 11 / 12, and his family remained in parallel at their same ages, approx. 1923 – 1963.) ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tom-lehrer-is-still-alive/731044/16 "2015-09-14T14:32:24Z")
Well, like most long-running comic strips, _Beetle Bailey_ mostly just re-uses the same gags repeatedly, any more. If you’re just starting reading it, it might seem fresh for a little while, but after a while, you read it out of habit, not for the laughs. Back on topic, is Lehrer still creating any new works? I find it hard to believe that he’s gone completely cold turkey, but I don’t think I’ve seen anything from him more recent than the 70s. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tom-lehrer-is-still-alive/731044/17 "2015-09-14T14:34:30Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > And covering another creative medium, there’s Mort Walker. He’s 92 years old and he’s been doing _Beetle Bailey_ for 65 years. And in all that time, [Beetle Bailey has never gone to war](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=263629). ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tom-lehrer-is-still-alive/731044/18 "2015-09-14T16:40:23Z")
The [A.V. Club](http://www.avclub.com/article/tom-lehrer-13660) interviewed him back in 2000. I thought it was more recent than that, but I guess not. It’s worth a read. He never really thought of himself as a comedian. The songs were just something he did on the side to amuse his friends. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tom-lehrer-is-still-alive/731044/19 "2015-09-14T17:17:02Z")
> [@Smeghead](#): > > The [A.V. Club](http://www.avclub.com/article/tom-lehrer-13660) interviewed him back in 2000. I thought it was more recent than that, but I guess not. It’s worth a read. He never really thought of himself as a comedian. The songs were just something he did on the side to amuse his friends. [He was really an academic](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Lehrer#Academic_and_military_career), not retiring until 2001. He taught polysci, math – and musical theater. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tom-lehrer-is-still-alive/731044/20 "2015-09-14T17:44:27Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > Here’s a curious thing: [While he did a bit about “Clementine,”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1b3coO_6MwY) speculating about what the song “with no recognizable merit whatsoever” would have been if various non-folk musicians had done it, he appears to have completely overlooked the fact that “Clementine” scans perfectly to Beethoven’s or Schiller’s (or one of that crowd’s) [“Ode to Joy”](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ode_to_Joy). Given the rather large family of ‘ballad meter’ songs whose lyrics can be sung to each other’s tunes (including “Amazing Grace” and “Pop Goes the Weasel”) that certainly has no bearing on a song’s merits. 🙂 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tom-lehrer-is-still-alive/731044.md?page=2)