Slezak, Leo

Slezak, Leo slāˈzäk [key], 1873–1946, Czech tenor, pupil of Jean de Reszke. After his debut as Lohengrin at Brno in 1896, he sang in Vienna, Berlin, and later at the Metropolitan Opera, New York City (1909–12). He was famous for his robust voice and physique, and he had a flamboyant sense of humor.

See his memoirs (1928, tr. 1937); biography by his son, the actor Walter Slezak (1962).

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