[3] His father deserted his family, and when his mother married his stepfather, John L. Niman (Neiman) in 1926, LeRoy changed to the new surname as well.

He worked as a cook until the end of the war, when his art skills were recognized and put to use painting sets for Red Cross shows.

One day, after Hefner had started his magazine, he ran into Neiman on a street and asked him to become a contributor to Playboy.

In 1994, Neiman was commissioned to create the illustrated logo for the Sherman Brothers musical Busker Alley.

A documentary on his jazz painting, The Big Band, had its world premiere in Los Angeles in February 2009.

Originals can sell for up to $500,000 for works such as Stretch Stampede, a mammoth 1975 oil painting of the Kentucky Derby.

Some of his other subjects include sailing, cuisine, golf, boxing, horses, celebrities, famous locations, and America at play.

Neiman worked in oil, enamel, watercolor, pencil drawings, pastels, serigraphy and some lithographs and etching.

[6] Norman Rockwell once lived there, as well as celebrities Rudolph Valentino, Noël Coward, CNN founder Reese Schonfeld and former mayor John Lindsay.

Neiman continued to paint after having his right leg amputated, the result of arterial insufficiency, at a New York hospital in April 2010.

[citation needed] Neiman's autobiography, titled All Told: My Art and Life Among Athletes, Playboys, Bunnies, and Provocateurs was published on June 5, 2012.