Born in Spokane, WA. A former exhibitor and president of a movie theater chain, he went into production in the 1930s. He produced many serials, low-budget Westerns, and Tarzan pictures, as well as occasional quality films (OUR TOWN, 1940, and STAGE DOOR CANTEEN, 1942). In 1941 he joined RKO as executive in charge of feature production but resigned soon after to set up his own production company. Visit the Internet Movie Database for a listing of Lesser's producing credits.  Nominated for Best Picture 1940: OUR TOWN - Producer at United Artists  Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award 1960. 1 nomination, 1 Honorary Award