Comedian Jerry Lewis died on August 20, 2017 at the age of 91 from natural causes in his Las Vegas home. He made fifty feature films, mostly comedies, except for “The King of Comedy” (1983) and “Max Rose” (2016), his last. “The Day the Clown Cried” (1972) remains the holy grail of unreleased movies – Jerry’s ode to the Holocaust.
For 44 years, Jerry hosted the MDA Muscular Dystrophy Telethon. He was unceremoniously fired in 2011 for not agreeing to a shortened, modernized revolving-host format. Without him, the telethon lasted only four years. (2011-2014.)
For whatever reason, many hated Jerry. They hated the telethon, they hated his TV shows, his films. I guess there are some folks who hate Christmas too.
My personal favorite films were “The Errand Boy” (1961) and “The Patsy” (1964.)
My favorite scene comes from “The Family Jewels” (1965), where he portrays the most evil, rotten clown of all time.
He is gone now. A remnant of Hollywood’s golden age. He’s been replaced by filthy-minded people I wouldn’t break bread with.
Text © 2017 – ERN