Tom Lehrer, the mathematician and song satirist who had a massive musical influence in the 1950s and 1960s, has died. He was 97.

Lehrer passed away Saturday at his home in Cambridge, Massachusetts, his friend, David Herder, told the New York Times. 

A cause of death was not given.

Musician Tom Lehrer sits beside the piano in his house in Santa Cruz, Calif., on April 21, 2000. AP

Born on April 9, 1928 in New York City, Lehrer was passionate about music and academics at a young age.

He started studying classical piano at age 7 and went on to study mathematics at Harvard at age 15. He graduated with his Bachelor’s degree in 1946.

Lehrer wrote his own songs while in school. After graduating, he began recording and performing his own music including his first solo album, “Songs of Tom Lehrer,” which came out in 1953. 

Portrait of singer-songwriter Tom Lehrer who died at 97. Redferns

After serving in the US Army for two years, Lehrer released his second album, “More of Tom Lehrer,” and a live recording, “An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer,” both in 1959.

The following year, Lehrer was nominated for a Grammy for best comedy performance (musical).

Lehrer decided around that time to quit touring and focus on teaching math. 

However, he continued to work in music on the side. He composed a political satire song weekly for the NBC topical comedy show “That Was the Week That Was.”

Tom Lehrer served in the US Army for two years. Michael Ochs Archives

The groundbreaking show, which ran from 1963 to 1965, was considered a precursor to “Saturday Night Live.”

Lehrer later released his songs for the show in his own album called “That Was the Year That Was,” which peaked at No. 18 on Billboard’s Top 200 Albums in 1966.

In addition, Lehrer wrote songs for the 1970s PBS children’s show “The Electric Company.”

Despite his musical success, Lehrer decided to quit performing for good and disappeared from the public eye in the 1970s to focus on academia. 

Tom Lehrer was also a satirist who influenced music in the 1950s. George Konig / Shutterstock

Lehrer previously told the Associated Press that he didn’t enjoy performing in public.

“I enjoyed it up to a point,” he stated in 2000. “But to me, going out and performing the concert every night when it was all available on record would be like a novelist going out and reading his novel every night.”

In the 1980s, Lehrer garnered newfound attention with Cameron Mackintosh’s musical “Tomfoolery,” a revue of Lehrer’s songs that opened in London’s West End and later played in New York.

Tom Lehrer said he didn’t enjoy performing in public. Ken Towner/Associated Newspapers / Shutterstock

In the final years of his academic career, Lehrer taught mathematics at several universities including Harvard, MIT and the University of California, Santa Cruz, before retiring in 2001.

In Nov. 2022, Lehrer announced on his website that he relinquished ownership of his music to the public domain.

“In short, I no longer retain any rights to any of my songs,” he wrote in a statement. “So help yourselves, and don’t send me any money.”

Lehrer never married and didn’t have any children.