Jerry Lewis

[PurrPurr]

Comedy legend and humanitarian dies at 91:
http://variety.com/2017/film/people-...or-1202533899/

[PiggyTx]

RIP

[pkstracy]

I didn't much care for his movies, but rest in peace sir.

[john*thomas]

I was never a fan of his type of comedy but I still respected his work.

[Leasie]

RIP.

[cleanskull]

One of the Biggies and a Legend has passed. Saw a lot of his post Martin break up movies at the Drive In with my Mom and Dad. Got to be a bit of a dick later on in life. Anywho, thanks for the laughs Mr. Lewis and R.I.P.

[Missy Lucy]

Loved him in King of Comedy. RIP.

[hisandhearse]

One of the Biggies and a Legend has passed. Saw a lot of his post Martin break up movies at the Drive In with my Mom and Dad. Got to be a bit of a dick later on in life. Anywho, thanks for the laughs Mr. Lewis and R.I.P.

So true about the "dick" comment, But maybe success got the better of him??? If so, STILL like you say: Thanks for the laughs..
Drive-ins, Now there is a blast from the past. I miss them.. I think there are only a few left nationwide?
Dang Clean, you just brought back a memory!
My parents were very weak on the parenting scale but some of my happiest memories were mum and dad loading us up into the station wagon loaded with snacks (snack bar was too costly for a family of eight!)to go to the drive in..(that they did right)
I don't know why but the intermission with the mosquitoes and snack bar always made me laugh and I was intrigued by the dancing snax! Lol--

[cash]

the last interview - a prick to the very end

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/new...s-watch-957115

[Follower]

Shades of Milton Berle maybe?

[KissingJosh]

Never, ever found him funny.

[Mcafgr]

Damn he was a son of a gun at the very end wasn't he?

[Mansfield67]

I didn't like him as an actor\comedian. Never thought he was funny. As a person, from all I've read he wasn't a nice one.

[PiggyTx]

I didn't like him as an actor\comedian. Never thought he was funny. As a person, from all I've read he wasn't a nice one.

same. I only write "RIP" when I have nothing nice to say LOL.
but yeah, my partner asked me, if I liked him. I told her I never found his stuff funny at all. I've read several things about him that
he was a dick in RL. so that didnt help either. But do have to give him props that he was in the biz for like 70 yrs.

[mulligan]

The guy was a knob.

[Weaver45]

I never thought he was funny, and he always came across as a nasty person in interviews. But RIP anyway.

[cleanskull]

So true about the "dick" comment, But maybe success got the better of him??? If so, STILL like you say: Thanks for the laughs..
Drive-ins, Now there is a blast from the past. I miss them.. I think there are only a few left nationwide?
Dang Clean, you just brought back a memory!
My parents were very weak on the parenting scale but some of my happiest memories were mum and dad loading us up into the station wagon loaded with snacks (snack bar was too costly for a family of eight!)to go to the drive in..(that they did right)
I don't know why but the intermission with the mosquitoes and snack bar always made me laugh and I was intrigued by the dancing snax! Lol--

When he was putting out all those Rom Coms in the late 50's into the 60's we would go to either the Base Theatre or a Drive In. Always got a Mosquito Coil to burn with your Drive In Ticket.

[Tony Trout]

Never did like JL. I always thought he was a total jerk (and it looks like by the replies in this thread that I wasn't far off the mark with my thoughts).

I just hope that he's finally found peace.

[cleanskull]

He is with Milton Merle now, comparing Johnsons.

[Linnie]

I suppose this will be a day of national mourning in France, or was his reputation there rather on the exaggerated side?

Is his first wife Patti Palmer (nee Esther Calonico) still alive? IIRC, she was a couple of years his senior.

[Domino]

I never found him the least bit funny either and it seems we can all agree on the guy being a total dick.

[Mansfield67]

Most comedians are dicks in real life. I've read that Milton Berle and Buddy Hackett were the same way. Buddy being the worst, some actor said he was the most miserable SOB in town. I never thought he was funny either. LOL

[cleanskull]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borscht_Belt Look at the list of Comedians that worked this circuit. Several of them turned mean as they got older.

[Bayou Queen]

I just saw an interview he did saying how much respect he had for Robin Williams as a comic genius, I agree Robim was a genius but Jerry Lewis more less reminded me of Jim Carrey, certainly not my darling Robin. The person I most think is like Jerry Lewis in his comic style is Jim Carrey, and when I watch either of them I feel like I need a stiff drink or a Xanax, they both get on my nerves. I was a fan Of Dean Martin and his mellow sense of humor and music. I think I am a bigger fan of Jerry's son Gary Lewis. Gary recently said his Father was difficult? None the less, remembering him and his humanitarian accomplishments. Nonetheless may you RIP Jerry Lewis.

[cash]

I just saw an interview he did saying how much respect he had for Robin Williams as a comic genius, I agree Robim was a genius but Jerry Lewis more less reminded me of Jim Carrey, certainly not my darling Robin. The person I most think is like Jerry Lewis in his comic style is Jim Carrey, and when I watch either of them I feel like I need a stiff drink or a Xanax, they both get on my nerves. I was a fan Of Dean Martin and his mellow sense of humor and music. I think I am a bigger fan of Jerry's son Gary Lewis. Gary recently said his Father was difficult? None the less, remembering him and his humanitarian accomplishments. Nonetheless may you RIP Jerry Lewis.

Those MDA telethons always made me uncomfortable - the way they wheeled out the kids. Seemed to be an ego trip for Lewis.

[cleanskull]

A nice little write up and vid about Jerry. http://www.msn.com/en-us/movies/cele...cid=spartanntp

[hisandhearse]

Those MDA telethons always made me uncomfortable - the way they wheeled out the kids. Seemed to be an ego trip for Lewis.

The husband and I were just talking about that last night and he said the same thing you did...He heard that Jerry didn't treat the ppl or kids around him very well and also had a history of treating cast and crew like garbage on movie sets too.
I wasnt aware that he was such a nasty batch.

[Shellie]

I never really knew much about him apart from the fact he was a comedian and did films with Dean Martin. It was a surprise to hear many say they didn't really give a crap as I thought he was popular and well liked until I read a little bit about his private life.

[cleanskull]

He outlived his popularity. By quite a bit. Has to be rough on the ego.

[Schultz]

I didn't like his type of comedy and he was a dick. He threatened to kill Joan Rivers a few years ago. Joan is missed but he will never be.

[MurkyWaters]

His early sixties talk show was a disaster, one in particular had the actor Cornel Wilde as guest being repeatedly addressed as "Mr Will-duh". Jerry thought that was funny along with his customary mugging. Saw it a few years ago on a docu about talk shows, but can't recall the title.

[john*thomas]

Most comedians are dicks in real life. I've read that Milton Berle and Buddy Hackett were the same way. Buddy being the worst, some actor said he was the most miserable SOB in town. I never thought he was funny either. LOL

Now I liked Buddy. LOL. I would have loved to have seen him in Vegas in his prime.

[cleanskull]

More Dickness. http://www.msn.com/en-us/movies/cele...cid=spartandhp

[PiggyTx]

what is the fucking deal with comedians? they want to make ppl happy, but they suck at life? WTF??

[Poo Bah MCGee]

Jerry Lewis was funny when he had Dean martin to reflect the character he was trying to portray. Alone, he was an egotistical cretin who used human issues such as physical deformaties and social awkwardness to enhance his character. He was very pro-Viet Nam War until his son got hit with gut material from an explosion in his mess tent. He tried to revive an old Vaudeville show called "Hellzapoppin", but failed when one of the Redgrave sisters sang a song with the lyrics, "I miss that old gang, that I used to bang", and he flipped out, calling her a slut, then commenting "I should have taken out my **** and pissed on her". His biggest fiasco was a movie he made about a clown who was forced by the Nazis to lead children into a gas chamber. In the supposedly "touching" last moment, the clown follows them in and dies with them. The premise was so bad, so blatantly awful, he kept the movie under lock and key, and wanted it destroyed after he died.
Jerry Lewis was considered a supreme comedian in France, but he was following DeGaulle, who made him look good.
Either he invested well or continued to make money in Hollywood, because he lived like a star right up to his end.
I thought Berle was actually very funny. Buddy Hackett was a total schmuck in person.

[Bayou Queen]

Jerry Lewis was funny when he had Dean martin to reflect the character he was trying to portray. Alone, he was an egotistical cretin who used human issues such as physical deformaties and social awkwardness to enhance his character. He was very pro-Viet Nam War until his son got hit with gut material from an explosion in his mess tent. He tried to revive an old Vaudeville show called "Hellzapoppin", but failed when one of the Redgrave sisters sang a song with the lyrics, "I miss that old gang, that I used to bang", and he flipped out, calling her a slut, then commenting "I should have taken out my **** and pissed on her". His biggest fiasco was a movie he made about a clown who was forced by the Nazis to lead children into a gas chamber. In the supposedly "touching" last moment, the clown follows them in and dies with them. The premise was so bad, so blatantly awful, he kept the movie under lock and key, and wanted it destroyed after he died.
Jerry Lewis was considered a supreme comedian in France, but he was following DeGaulle, who made him look good.
Either he invested well or continued to make money in Hollywood, because he lived like a star right up to his end.
I thought Berle was actually very funny. Buddy Hackett was a total schmuck in person.

That is some great info and I did not know about that Nazi movie. Did not know that about Hackett, being a jerk either. If you've got something bad to say about someone, come sit next to me by all means.

There are days when I have to turn off the news and right now with the flooding in Texas, it reminds me too much of what we went through here during Katrina and it hurts my heart for these people. So I will escape into an old black and white movie. But a Jerry Lewis movie would certainly not be my choice. Wonder if there will be any Daddy Dearest books? May you RIP nonetheless.

[john*thomas]

I'd actually love to see The Day the Clown Cried. Maybe one day.

[cash]

I'd actually love to see The Day the Clown Cried. Maybe one day.

not til 2025 apparently

https://www.thefourohfive.com/film/a...until-2025-150

[Mansfield67]

I just finished reading West Of Eden: An American Place by Jean Stein. Her last published work before committing suicide this past spring. Anyway, it tells the stories of five families that shaped Los Angeles, The Doheny's the Warner's and others. When actress Jennifer Jones 3rd husband Norton Simon passed she called his son and asked would he like to see him before they took his body he said " Yes, I want to make sure he's really dead." I wonder if any of Jerry's boys thought that. Hmm. I highly recommend the book to all death hags. Craziness , insanity, and more then a few suicides. Not a happy bunch in the land of sunshine, swimming pools and movie stars. Read up on the demise of it's author, more than ironic ! http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...ped-death.html

[cash]

I just finished reading West Of Eden: An American Place by Jean Stein. Her last published work before committing suicide this past spring. Anyway, it tells the stories of five families that shaped Los Angeles, The Doheny's the Warner's and others. When actress Jennifer Jones 3rd husband Norton Simon passed she called his son and asked would he like to see him before they took his body he said " Yes, I want to make sure he's really dead." I wonder if any of Jerry's boys thought that. Hmm. I highly recommend the book to all death hags. Craziness , insanity, and more then a few suicides. Not a happy bunch in the land of sunshine, swimming pools and movie stars. Read up on the demise of it's author, more than ironic ! http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...ped-death.html

I missed Jean Stein's death - I read her book on Edie Sedgwick years ago

[Mansfield67]

Edie is one of my favorite books. West Of Eden is written in the same style, far more intimate when you get to hear what others thought of these people and their own interactions with them. Her own family is the final chapter in the book.

[cleanskull]

Jerry Lewis left 6 sons from first marriage out of will: http://www.msn.com/en-us/movies/cele...tandhp&ffid=gz

Dickness from beyond.

[john*thomas]

Jerry Lewis left 6 sons from first marriage out of will: http://www.msn.com/en-us/movies/cele...tandhp&ffid=gz

Dickness from beyond.

What a lousy legacy.

[Aviatrix]

Hateful to the very end and then some!

[hell0kitty]

glad you're dead Jerry, you were a worthless SOB.

[Follower]

"Caaaaan You Feeeeel The Loooove Tonight..."

[Mansfield67]

They considered him a comic genius in France. I've been to Montreal and Paris, if they have a sense of humor about anything I never saw it ! Les Miserables. LOL

[JimC]

He is with Milton Merle now, comparing Johnsons.

Wangers; they're comparing wangers.

I've read that Uncle Miltie's huge wanger would dwarf Jerry's; but that Jerry was probably the bigger dick.
His comedy style didn't really appeal to me.

I always thought that the Martin and Lewis reunion at the telethon one year was pretty cool - Jerry looked like he was going to cry.
Here's the short version:

https://youtu.be/FLxwARHPGWY

Dean had tons of suave and the maximum amount of cool.

[Demgirl]

A very good friend of mine's father was friends with Lewis. Friend's dad was an executive with one of the big corporations that always made donations to the MDA telethons. He used to go out to Vegas to make the presentation during the show. He would hang out, go to Jerry's party, out to dinner with him. Friend's dad had a creative sense of humor himself (an early fan of Monty Python), not as out there as Jerry, though.

Anyway, my friend used to talk of the times Jerry would call his dad. Seems like he was the kind of friend who called if he heard you were sick or something similar going on, sent gifts for all occasions, etc. He seemed a very considerate guy for a celebrity, at least to his friends. My friend answered the phone a few times when Jerry called their home (no caller id then). He said when he picked up, Jerry always greeted you loudly with his "hey lady" voice (no secretary placing the call, just Jerry himself). Startling at first, until you realized who it was, then hilarious. If dad wasn't there, he chatted a while and left a message with whomever answered the phone. Not a big ego to them, but very nice and considerate.

Jerry seemed one of those people who presented himself differently to others depending on what was going on,and how often you interacted with him, I'm sure. Friend's dad's company made a big donation every year, so Jerry was going to be very nice to him, but they also became casual friends, even after friend's dad retired. The general impression, though, is that he was a high maintenance person, as many celebs are and very demanding and impatient with those who worked around him. Feel sorry for his wife and kids as they seemed to get a raw deal. Kind of reminds me of Johnny Carson and a few other male celebs of that era. Chasing fame made them career-driven workaholics with big egos and hidden insecurities who treated their families poorly.

In the end, it doesn't matter how much you accomplished in life if you treat your family badly. Cutting your kids out of your will when you're a wealthy person = you screwed up as a parent.

[Dangitbawb]

I'm surprised no one mention his homeless daughter he had with model Lynn Dixon:http://www.insideedition.com/headlin...her-dads-death

When I was a kid I did find Jerry Lewis movies to be funny and quite entertaining, but we didn't know any better back then...