Jerry Lewis unreleased film on the Holocaust has become something of a legend.  Filmed in Sweden, much of it with his own money, it remains an enigma, seen by only a few people.  What happened?

In 1971, producer Nat Wachsberger offered Jerry Lewis the role, plus the chance to direct.  Lewis agreed, believing it would put him in the realm of serious filmmakers.

Things started to go awry when he began tinkering with the screenplay, trying to make it “funny”.  At the time, Jerry Lewis owned a small theater chain with plans of releasing it in his own theaters.   These theaters catered to a family viewing audience.  How can you release a depressing saga about genocide for the kiddies?  So, Jerry Lewis set out with the impossible task of making a family-friendly Holocaust film – Rated PG.

1972.  During filming, producer Wachsberger failed to come up with the needed funding – Lewis was forced to pay for it himself.  Upon completion, the unpaid screenwriters (Joan O’Brien and Charles Denton) didn’t approve of the film and didn’t want it to be released.  Wachsberger kept the original print.  Jerry, having his own copy, took it back to the States.  Due to all the legal problems, ownership issues and copyright difficulties, “Clown” became unreleasable.  Because the writers weren’t paid, they retained copyright control.

Years passed,.  Jerry Lewis said “Clown” was complete or nearly finished, required some editing and that it would be released eventually.  Until…

Back in the late 70’s , D.J. Casey Kasem was one of the emcees for the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon.  Jerry loaned Kasem a videotape copy of “Clown”, which he unwisely loaned to actor Harry Shearer.  Shearer leaked it to the press that “The Day the Clown Cried” was a turkey – wrong in every aspect of development.  Lewis outraged, fired Casey Kasem from the telethon and locked up his movie.

Towards the end of his life, Jerry commented that “Clown” had become an “embarrassment” to him, that he thought he “could pull it off, but couldn’t.”  For a while, he said he burned it, which wasn’t true.  “The Day the Clown Cried” was donated to the Library of Congress and won’t be released until the year 2024.

My personal opinion is that Jerry Lewis’ film is neither the best or the worst movie ever made.  It remains a curiosity item; a lost fragment of cinema.

Text © 2018 – ERN