The King Of Comedy Had A Serious Dark Side

“Mr. Lewis, you are a complete nut.” After Jerry Lewis died, his sons told the world the chilling truth about their father. In some circles, they say that comedy as we know it wouldn’t exist without Jerry Lewis; he walked so that the comedians we know and love could run. However, the comedian’s life was not nearly as straightforward nor squeaky clean as one might suspect. The King of Comedy had his skeletons to hide.

He was born on March 16th, 1926, to two Jewish immigrants. His father, Danny Levitch, immigrated to New York from the Russian Empire, and his mother, Rachel, from Warsaw. His father performed in vaudeville, and his mother was a pianist. Lewis himself developed an impulsive sense of humor early. As a teenager, he played pranks and caused mostly harmless trouble. Lewis’s early acts included a skit referred to as his “record act.” It was a simple gimmick: he would mime singing the lyrics while a record played offstage. By age 15, he’d landed a gig in Buffalo, but it didn’t sell, and he was unable to book anymore.

Following this failure, Jerry Lewis seemed to have put entertainment behind him. Instead, he took on a series of jobs to make ends meet, including working as a soda vendor and an usher at theaters in New York. It wasn’t until he connected with a friend of his father from his vaudeville days that things began to turn around. The friend was Max Coleman, and he convinced Lewis to give performing another chance. Lewis began performing, particularly in the Borscht Belt, a series of resorts in the Catskills in New York that were particularly popular with Jewish vacationers. It was here that Irving Kaye saw Lewis’s act and became his manager.

For many young men in the 1940s, their lives were put on hold as the world dissolved into conflict, but not Jerry Lewis. Due to a heart murmur, the USA rejected him from service. This allowed him to meet and fall in love with Patti Palmer, a singer. As a pair of performers, it was a natural match. They married on October 3rd, 1944, and would go on to adopt a son in 1949, then have five biological children throughout the 50s. From the outside, it may have looked like the perfect marriage. However, as Lewis’s star began to rise, the tensions in his home life increased with it.

One year after getting married, he was 19 years old and performing at the Glass Hat Club in New York City. Dean Martin, then 27 and yet to fully come into his own as a singer, was also performing. It would be another two years before the pair would appear together for the first time on stage. This time, Lewis was performing at the 500 Club in Atlantic City. The other singer that had been scheduled to perform had become unavailable. They had a problem, but Lewis had a solution: he suggested that Martin fill in.

Anyone who’s a fan of classic comedy will know that eventually, Lewis and Martin became a dynamic duo. However, in the early days, that was far from the case. They were so bad initially that Skinny D’Amato, owner of the 500 Club, threatened to toss them out if they didn’t improve their act. Martin and Lewis needed to find something new, or they’d be sunk before they even started. Another thing that fans of classic films will know is that Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin had true magic. It was their ability to ad-lib that brought about the real charm, and that was exactly what brought their success at the 500 Club. They tossed out their pre-written jokes and instead ran with an improvised set that revolved around Lewis interrupting Martin’s performance. The audience loved them.

Once Lewis and Martin found the magic formula for their routine, they became unstoppable. They began touring the eastern seaboard before ending at the popular Copacabana Club in New York. In 1948, NBC booked them for “The Martin and Lewis Show,” which ran on radio until 1953. Again, at that same time, Ed Sullivan was launching one of his early shows, “Toast of the Town.” Martin and Lewis made a key appearance in the first episode of this variety series and would continue to make appearances on various variety shows until April 1949, when they tried their hand at their own show. With a successful radio show under their belts, they expected their TV show to get a big reaction, but much like their early days on stage, the initial reviews were less than stellar. Their antics, which had served so well on stage and radio, failed to impress television viewers. But while they dipped their toes in television, it was Hollywood that would truly shoot their stardom to new heights.

Paramount signed Lewis and Martin to a film deal in 1949. They first appeared together in “My Friend Irma,” a film that starred Marie Wilson and Diana Lynn as a pair of hapless roommates looking for love. While Paramount hired Martin and Lewis for comedic relief in an ensemble cast, the film showed the world the magic that was the comedic duo on the big screen. Together, they’d go on to make 14 films between 1950 and 1956.

In 1950, another young actor was looking to follow in his theatrical parents’ footsteps and make his mark. Sammy Petrillo was eight years younger than Jerry Lewis and happened to bear a striking resemblance to him. Lewis didn’t like the looming competition that Petrillo posed, and he wanted to do something about it. Lewis hired Petrillo to play a baby in a sketch for “The Colgate Comedy Hour.” Petrillo recalled Lewis as being abrasive in the meeting. Although Petrillo was initially hesitant, he was persuaded to sign with MCA, Lewis’s talent agency, but it backfired spectacularly. Lewis promised Petrillo work that never appeared. He wasn’t helping Petrillo; he was keeping him on the shelf so that Petrillo would never find work and never jeopardize Lewis’s career. Because he was a minor at the time, his father got Petrillo out of his contract with Lewis. Then, in the early 50s, Petrillo met Duke Mitchell, a singer, and they paired up as a Martin and Lewis-esque double act. Lewis was not amused and used his considerable influence to blackball them whenever he could.

By the spring of 1956, tensions were high between Lewis and Martin. As the pair gained more and more fame, the spotlight became more focused on Lewis, leaving Martin on the sidelines. Everyone called Lewis the talented one while they implied that Martin was simply tagging along. In 1954, Martin’s already frayed nerves had been rubbed raw when Look magazine published a photo of Lewis on the cover. But not just any photo—Look had taken a photo that included both men but cropped Martin out entirely. This was the beginning of the end. For exclusive perks like early access to new videos, priority replies to your comments, and to have your say on future content, consider becoming a Factinate member. On top of that, your support helps keep the channel going. Click the link in the description for more details.

The last film that Martin and Lewis made together was called “Hollywood or Bust.” It was not a pleasurable filming experience. After that, they did a small series of engagements that they’d already agreed to at the Copacabana Club, which became their farewell shows. Exactly ten years after teaming up, Martin and Lewis performed their last show together, and Lewis was on his own.

Jerry Lewis had spent a decade working with Dean Martin. They had built their careers together. For many rising stars, it would have been their time to shine, but not Lewis. Following the split, he lost his confidence. Soon after, Lewis and his wife were on vacation in Las Vegas when he heard from Judy Garland’s manager and husband, Sid Luft. Garland had strep throat and couldn’t perform. He wanted Lewis to save the day and step into her place. Lewis may have been hesitant to step on stage as a solo act at first; however, this opportunity was exactly the push he needed. The crowd’s response was rapturous and gave him the confidence to continue on his own without a partner.

In response to this performance in Vegas, Lewis recorded the songs he’d sung, which earned him a record deal. He also began performing at the Sands Hotel and Casino in Vegas, which launched a new phase of his career that focused on solo live performances. They’d be a staple throughout the remainder of his career. Lewis was a bona fide performer, and he’d proved that he didn’t need Martin to entertain audiences. He appeared on specials and hosted the Academy Awards three times between 1956 and 1959. He also remained at Paramount and began starring in films solo. He signed a contract in 1959 that not only gave him unprecedented control over his future films but also made him the highest-paid performer in Hollywood to date.

A decision by Paramount in 1960 enabled Lewis to change the way films were made forever. He’d filmed “Cinderfella” for a summer release; however, Paramount decided to save it for Christmas. Having created a hole in their lineup, Paramount wanted Lewis to make a film in order to replace it. In response, Jerry Lewis created “The Bellboy,” which he not only starred in but directed, co-wrote, and produced. The filming schedule was tight; Lewis was filming in the day and performing at night. Instead of a dialogue-heavy movie, the film focuses on Lewis’s physical comedy. This was to save time on filming. However, the real time-saver was the use of monitors to instantly review his scenes, letting him know if he needed to re-film without having to wait for dailies. Since Lewis had essentially made a silent movie, Paramount weren’t happy and pulled their backing. Lewis had to use his own money in the end to finish the film. However, it was Lewis who had the last laugh. “The Bellboy” is one of his most popular films and was a financial success. From this point on, Jerry Lewis would continue to have a large amount of creative control over his movies, often having some hand in writing, direction, producing, or all three.

Although Lewis had made his mark as a solo artist, his early days with Dean Martin followed him, and the consequences of their split were devastating. Lewis stated that he and Martin didn’t speak in private for 20 years, something he regretted. However, publicly they reunited a few times. The most famous instance was in 1976 when Frank Sinatra arranged for Martin to surprise Lewis on one of his annual Labor Day telethons for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. This was one relationship Lewis seemed to repair before it was too late. His relationship with his family, however, was another matter entirely.

Despite having never made an effort to hide his infidelities, Jerry Lewis remained married for nearly 40 years. However, in 1980, his wife Patti finally had enough of his antics and filed for divorce. SanDee Pitnick was a stewardess who was also professionally trained as a ballerina. At the same time that Palmer was filing for divorce, Pitnick earned a small dancing role in Lewis’s film “Hardly Working.” The pair married in February 1983. Lewis and Pitnick adopted a daughter in the early 90s, and he never looked back at his first family, even when it was clear his time was up. He suffered his first heart attack in 1960 when he was only 34 years old. He’d survive two more in 1982 and 2006, so when Lewis finally succumbed to his heart problems in 2017, it was more of a surprise that he made it to 91 at all.

Lewis’s death unlocked both praise and scrutiny on all that he’d done, particularly from his family. Patti Palmer was Lewis’s wife for nearly 40 years, and together they raised six sons. But in the end, his parting gift to them was a heartbreaking act of cruelty. Lewis cut every single one of his sons and their families out of his will, leaving money only to Pitnick and their daughter. Following Lewis’s death, several of his sons came forward to discuss what life with their father was like. His youngest son, Anthony, said that his father was unpredictable and they would never know which version of him would come home. He went as far as calling him emotionally abusive, yet he still held some warmth in his heart for his father. Unlike some of his siblings, Anthony’s elder brother, Gary, had much harsher words for his father. Gary called him a mean and evil person and insisted that he never showed any of his children any love.

In 2022, Vanity Fair reported that several of Lewis’s female co-stars from films he’d made in the 60s came together to accuse him of harassment, verbal abuse, and even sexual assault. To date, nothing has come of these allegations. Where is the touch? Despite the controversy that exists around Jerry Lewis’s character, it’s undeniable that he did much for the future and development of comedy. Before him, comedy was a much stiffer affair. Lewis was unafraid to be bold, to take risks, and most importantly, to laugh at himself. Many of the comedians we know and love today, such as Steve Martin, Richard Pryor, and Jim Carrey, owe their start to Lewis. Carrey, upon hearing of Lewis’s death, stated that through his comedy, Jerry would stretch the boundaries of reality so far that it was an act of anarchy. He’s the one. You’re on camera.

If you enjoyed this Factinate video, give it a thumbs up and subscribe for more incredible stories. If you want to have a say in who we cover next, join our membership program through the link in the description for exclusive perks. Your support means everything to us. Thanks for watching, and we’ll see you in the next one.