Tom Lehrer, musical satirist and mathematician, dies at 97

Tom Lehrer, the popular and erudite song-speaker who ridiculed marriage, politics, racism, and the Cold War, and then largely abandoned his musical career to return to teaching mathematics at Harvard and other universities, has died. He was 97.

His longtime friend, David Herder, said Lehrer died Saturday at his home in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He did not specify the cause of death.

Lehrer remained on the mathematics faculty at the University of California, Santa Cruz, well into his 70s. In 2020, he even waived his own copyright, granting the public permission to use his lyrics in any format without any royalties.

A Harvard prodigy—he earned a degree in mathematics from the institution at 18—Lehrer soon turned his sharp mind to old traditions and current events . His songs included "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park , " " Old Dope Peddler ," " Be Prepared " (in which he mocked the Boy Scouts ), and "The Vatican Rag ," in which Lehrer, an atheist, mocked the rites and ceremonies of the Catholic Church. (Sample lyrics: "Get on your knees, play with your rosaries. Bow your head in high respect, and genuflect, genuflect, genuflect.")

Accompanying himself on piano, he performed the songs in a colorful style reminiscent of musical heroes such as Gilbert and Sullivan and Stephen Sondheim , the latter a lifelong friend. Lehrer was often compared to contemporaries such as Allen Sherman and Stan Freberg for his comic commentary on culture and politics, and was cited by Randy Newman and Weird Al Jankovic, among others, as an influence.

He mocked forms of music he disliked (modern folk songs, rock 'n' roll, and modern jazz), laughed at the threat of nuclear annihilation, and denounced discrimination.

But he attacked in such an erudite, even polite, way that almost no one objected.

"Tom Lehrer is the most brilliant song satirist ever recorded," musicologist Barry Hansen once said. Hansen co-produced the 2000-song compilation box set, The Remains of Tom Lehrer , and had featured Lehrer's music for decades on his syndicated radio show Dr. Demento.

Lehrer was born in 1928 in New York City, the son of a successful tie designer. He recalled an idyllic childhood on Manhattan's Upper West Side that included attending Broadway shows with his family and walking through Central Park day or night.

After skipping two grades in school, he entered Harvard at age 15 and, after receiving his master's degree , spent several years unsuccessfully pursuing a doctorate.

He began teaching part-time in Santa Cruz in the 1970s, primarily to escape the harsh New England winters.

Occasionally, he acknowledged, a student would enroll in one of his classes based on their knowledge of his songs.

"But it's a real math class," he said at the time. "I don't do any fun theorems. So those people leave pretty quickly."