Mar. 14, 1963 - Lenny Bruce, 37-year-old comedian, was sentenced today to a year and a day in prison and fined $1,000 after being convicted of presenting an obscene show. Mr. Bruce had been arrested on the obscenity charge last December 5 in a raid on a Chicago nightclub called The Gate of Horn, where he was performing. Following the guilty verdict on February 28, Mr. Bruce made bail and returned to Los Angeles. Two days ago, he sent a telegram to the judge in the Chicago trial, Judge Daniel Ryan, accusing him of “illegal, unconstitutional, and fascistic behavior.” The authorities in Chicago have indicated that if Mr. Bruce does not return to serve out his sentence, they will send a fugitive warrant to California requesting his extradition. A similar obscenity trial of Mr. Bruce in Los Angeles in February resulted in a mistrial.
