Leonard Hacker (August 31, 1924 – June 30, 2003) was an American comedian and actor. In his later life, he and his wife set up the Singita Animal Sanctuary in the San Fernando Valley, California.

Buddy Hackett was born in Brooklyn, New York, of Jewish heritage, the son of an upholsterer. The family lived in the Williamsburg area of Brooklyn at 504 Kosciuszko Street. He grew up on 54th and 14th Ave in Borough Park, Brooklyn across from PS 103 (now a Yeshiva). He attended Public School 103 and then went on to New Utrecht High School. After school, he held jobs with the local grocer, and answered the phone at a doctor's office. While still in high school, he began appearing in nightclubs, beginning with the "Borscht Belt" resorts in the Catskills. His first performance was at the Golden Hotel in Hurleyville, and he claims not to have gotten one laugh.

He served three years with an anti-aircraft unit during World War II. He married, and had a son and two daughters.