John Lehr's hilarious turn as one of the original GEICO cavemen has been etched in our minds
ever since the auto insurance company's popular commercial series first hit airwaves in 2004.
But did you know that this fellow is actually gorgeous in real life?
Check it out.
Lehr began scoring on-screen work a decade before he found himself hidden beneath that
infamous caveman makeup.
After appearing on Friends and starring alongside Christina Applegate in the ill-fated sitcom
Jesse during the '90s, he and Applegate reunited in the 2002 rom-com The Sweetest Thing.
Lehr's other big screen credits include director Noah Baumbach's films Kicking and Screaming,
Highball, and Mr. Jealousy.
Lehr is also known for hosting the first season of I'm a Celebrity…
Get Me Out of Here!, the reality show starring D-list celebs that aired on ABC in 2003.
Unsurprisingly, he also appeared on ABC's extremely short-lived Cavemen sitcom in 2007,
but it was just a small role in one episode.
Lehr has continued to work steadily in the industry over the years, with his most successful
gigs coming from his own produced work.
For a long time, Lehr struggled to truly find his footing in showbiz.
As a stand-up comedian whose material is based in storytelling, and as an actor who'd rather
improvise than follow a script, he often found himself stuck in an unsatisfying middle.
This turned out to be an issue when it came to finding work.
To combat this problem, Lehr eventually branched out on his own to combine his acting and writing
talents on both stage and screen by producing his own projects.
His first solo effort in this vein was a one-man Off-Broadway show in 2004 called The Lehr
Curse: A Series of Comedic Lectures, which ending up changing the course of his career.
In 2004, Lehr teamed up with actor/producer Nancy Hower to create Howler Monkey Productions.
This company allowed the duo to write and produce their own improv-based works in film
and television, including the TBS workplace sitcom 10 Items or Less and the 2011 Crackle
series Jailbait, both of which starred Lehr himself.
The culmination of all these efforts was the unfortunately short-lived Hulu series Quick
Draw.
This Western comedy ran for two seasons beginning in 2013, and it starred Lehr as a Harvard
graduate-turned-sheriff named Henry Hoyle in 1875 Kansas.
"Everything out here is three days ride.
It's like…
I'm so chafed!
I will show you later, I will take my pants off, you will see.
'cause I have eczema?"
Lehr has a history of alcohol abuse and drug addiction, but he's maintained his sobriety
for over twenty years.
In a 2008 interview with The A.V.
Club, he talked about how his long-held demons stemmed from deep insecurities and self-loathing.
He's also cited an arrest in 1996 that forced him to change course.
He was sitting in the back of a cop car, high on LSD.
He described the moment in a 2003 interview with Jewish Journal, saying,
Since then, Lehr's experiences with addiction have fueled some of his comedy work, including
his one-man shows The Lehr Curse and Cold Sober Comedy.
"Cold Sober Comedy is inspirational speaking that is meant to entertain at the same time.
It's supposed to be funny."
A major part of Lehr's journey toward sobriety was his conversion to Judaism.
Prior to marrying his wife Jennifer Schlosberg Lehr, his interest in the religion began with
a desire to learn more about her faith.
Since her family was Jewish and conservative, he wanted to know what he was getting into.
So Lehr ended up taking conversion classes at the University of Judaism in Los Angeles,
and later completed a Jewish meditation class.
The latter experience, as he told the Jewish Journal,
Not long after, he was encouraged by his wife, therapist, and sponsor to convert.
After John and Jennifer Lehr tied the knot in 2001, the couple welcomed two kiddos into
the world, daughter Jules in 2006 and son Hudson in 2008.
In a 2010 interview with Macaroni Kid, the proud dad jokingly said,
As for married life, the Lehrs seem to share a perfect union, but it took years of hard
work to foster that connection.
In an interview on DanaRoc.com, Jennifer said,
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