Larry Storch Net Worth

What was Larry Storch's net worth?

Larry Storch was an American actor who had a net worth of $1 million at the time of his death in July 2022. Larry Storch was best known for his role as the bumbling Corporal Randolph Agarn on the classic 1960s sitcom "F Troop." With a career that spanned more than seven decades across stage, screen, radio, and voice acting, Storch became one of the most enduring comic performers of his generation. His sharp timing, mastery of mimicry, and knack for physical comedy made him a familiar face on television and in nightclubs long before "F Troop" made him a household name. Though best remembered for his slapstick antics in uniform, Storch also built a long and varied résumé that included Broadway performances, film appearances, and an extensive career as a voice actor in cartoons. Behind the scenes, his personal life held remarkable stories of family, resilience, and reconciliation that added a deeper dimension to his public persona.

Early Life

Lawrence Samuel Storch was born on January 8, 1923, in Manhattan, New York City. His father, Alfred Storch, worked variously as a real estate agent and cabdriver, while his mother, Sally, was a telephone operator who later ran a jewelry store and a rooming house. Growing up during the Great Depression, Storch discovered early on that his talent for impressions could help him earn extra money. He left high school and began performing in local clubs, entertaining audiences with his uncanny ability to imitate celebrities and dialects. He later credited the diverse guests in his mother's boarding house—including, he claimed, Orson Welles—with helping him perfect the range of voices that would define his comedic style.

During World War II, Storch served in the U.S. Navy, where one of his fellow sailors was Bernard Schwartz, who would later rise to fame as actor Tony Curtis. Their friendship would prove important in Storch's later film career, as Curtis often found ways to include him in his projects.

Rise to Fame

After the war, Storch found steady work as a nightclub comic and radio performer, earning a reputation for his quick wit and rapid-fire impressions. His television career began in the early 1950s when he hosted summer replacement shows for Jackie Gleason and made guest appearances on "Cavalcade of Stars." By the late 1950s and early 1960s, he had become a regular presence on television, appearing on "Car 54, Where Are You?" and voicing characters in animated series like "Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales," where he performed alongside his friend Don Adams.

Storch's big break came in 1965 when he was cast as Corporal Randolph Agarn on the ABC sitcom "F Troop." Set in a post–Civil War frontier outpost called Fort Courage, the show was a farcical send-up of Western tropes and military bureaucracy. Storch's Agarn was the comic foil to Forrest Tucker's enterprising Sergeant O'Rourke, and the two characters became one of television's great comedic duos. Storch's ability to transform into a parade of Agarn's "relatives" from various nationalities showcased his vaudevillian versatility, and the role earned him an Emmy nomination in 1967. Though "F Troop" ran for only two seasons, its syndicated reruns turned it into a cult favorite, cementing Storch's place in television history.

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Stage, Film, and Voice Work

Beyond "F Troop," Storch maintained an active and diverse career. On film, he appeared in several projects with Tony Curtis, including "40 Pounds of Trouble" (1962), "Sex and the Single Girl" (1964), and "The Great Race" (1965). He also had roles in Blake Edwards's "S.O.B." and the disaster film "Airport 1975." His voice could be heard in numerous animated productions and television commercials, including work for McDonald's, which he once called "the most money I ever made."

Storch's stage career included several Broadway appearances, beginning with "The Littlest Revue" in 1956. He later appeared in productions such as "Who Was That Lady I Saw You With?" (1958), revivals of "Porgy and Bess" (1983) and "Arsenic and Old Lace" (1986), and the musical "Annie Get Your Gun" (2000). In 2002, he reunited with Tony Curtis for a national tour of "Some Like It Hot," a stage adaptation of the 1959 film.

Personal Life

In 1961, Storch married actress Norma Greve, with whom he shared a long and complex family history. Years before their marriage, Norma had a biracial daughter, June Cross, with musician Jimmy Cross. Because of widespread prejudice at the time, Norma asked a Black couple in Atlantic City to raise her daughter, a painful decision that remained largely hidden for decades. June would later tell her story in the Emmy-winning PBS documentary "Secret Daughter" (1996), which depicted her eventual reunion with her mother and Storch. The couple also had a daughter together in 1948, whom they had placed for adoption and later reconnected with after the documentary aired. Norma died in 2003.

Later Years and Legacy

Even in his later years, Larry Storch remained a beloved figure in the entertainment community. He continued to make guest appearances at comedy events and nostalgia conventions, and he was honored with a star on the Palm Springs Walk of Stars. In 2016, he was recognized by the city of Passaic, New Jersey—the fictional hometown of his "F Troop" character—for his contributions to pop culture.

Storch's energy and humor endured well into his 90s. He was known to entertain fans by playing the saxophone in Central Park or standing on his head, which he claimed "helps your breathing." He made his final public appearance in 2021 at age 98, touring a Wild West-themed park in New Jersey.

Larry Storch died on July 8, 2022, at his home on Manhattan's Upper West Side at the age of 99. His legacy rests on a lifetime of laughter—built on hard work, old-school comic instincts, and an endless ability to connect with audiences. To generations of fans, he will forever be remembered as the mischievous Corporal Agarn, a character who embodied the joyful silliness that made classic television so enduring.

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