---
name: "Phil Leeds"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/phil-leeds"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "6 April 1916"
died: "16 August 1998"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 1
updated: "2026-09-16T21:17:26.185915+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Phil Leeds

Actor. Born 6 April 1916 in New York City. Died 16 August 1998.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 6 April 1916, New York City
- **Died:** 16 August 1998

## Biography

Phil Leeds (1916–1998) was an American character actor. Born Philip Lebowitz in New York City, he studied at City College of New York and served in the US Army during the Second World War. He began his career as a stand-up comedian in the Borscht Belt before moving into acting on stage, film and television.

Leeds appeared in films including *Rosemary's Baby* (1968) as Dr. Shand, *History of the World: Part I* (1981) as the Chief Monk, *Ghost* (1990) as the Emergency Room Ghost, *Beaches* (1988) and *Frankie and Johnny* (1991). On television he had guest roles in series such as *Friends* (1996) as Mr. Adelman, *Everybody Loves Raymond* (1996–1998) as Uncle Mel, *The Golden Girls* (1985) and *Boy Meets World* (1993). He was blacklisted during the McCarthy era and later resumed steady work in Los Angeles.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com, latimes.com.*

## On Fi1m (1)

- *Ghost* (1990), Fi1m 80, as Emergency Room Ghost — [page](https://film.one/film/ghost.md)

## Also known for

- *Rosemary's Baby* (1968), Dr. Shand
- *ALF* (1986), Jack
- *History of the World: Part I* (1981), Chief Monk - The Spanish Inquisition
- *Everybody Loves Raymond* (1996), Uncle Mel
- *Frankie and Johnny* (1991), Mr. DeLeon
- *Boy Meets World* (1993), Phil
- *Ally McBeal* (1997), Judge Dennis 'Happy' Boyle
- *Silent Movie* (1976), Waiter (uncredited)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/phil-leeds