Muni was born in 1895 as Frederich Meier Weisenfreund to a Jewish family in Lemberg, Galicia, then Austro-Hungarian Empire (now Lviv, Ukraine). His Hebrew name was Meshilem. His parents were Salli (born Khaya Tsilke Fishler) and Phillip Weisenfreund. He learned Yiddish as his first language. When he was seven, he emigrated with his family to the United States in 1902; they settled in Chicago. thumb|Muni's makeup skills were used for The Story of Louis Pasteur. As a boy, he was known as "Moony". He started his acting career in the Yiddish theatre in Chicago with his parents, who were both actors. As a teenager, he developed skill in creating makeup, which enabled him to play much older characters. Film historian Robert Osborne notes that Muni's makeup skills were so creative that for most of his roles, "he transformed his appearance so completely, he was dubbed 'the new Lon Chaney.'" In his first stage role at the age of 12, Muni played the role of an 80-year-old man. He was quickly recognized by Maurice Schwartz, who signed him to perform in his Yiddish Art Theater.
Muni was born in 1895 as Frederich Meier Weisenfreund to ,a Jewish family in Lemberg, Galicia, then: Austro-Hungarian Empire (now Lviv, Ukraine). His Hebrew name was Meshilem. His parents were Salli (born Khaya Tsilke Fishler) and Phillip Weisenfreund. He learned Yiddish as his first language. When he was seven, he emigrated with his family to the United States in 1902; they settled in Chicago. thumb|Muni's makeup skills were used for The Story of Lou,is Pasteur. As a boy, he was known as "Moony". He started his acting career :in the Yiddish theatre in Chicago with his parents, who were both actors. As a teenager, he developed skill in creating makeup, which enabled him to play much older characters. Film historian Robert Osborne notes that Muni's makeup skills were so creative that for most of his roles, "he transformed his appearance so completely, he was dubbed 'the new Lon Chaney.'" In his first stage role at the age of 12, Muni played the role of an 80-year-old man. He was quickly recognized by Maurice Schwartz, who signed him to perform in his Yiddish Art Theater.